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THE  STORYTHE  KEG  TOLD  M£ 
MAN   WHODIDNT   KNOW    MUCH 


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SHOOK  HIS  GIGANTIC  FIST  AT  THE  JUDGE."    Pace  277. 


ADIRONDACK  TALES. 


BY 


W.  H.  H.  MURRAY, 

AUTHOR    OF    "ADVENTURES    IN    THE   WILDERNESS,"    "  MUSIC-HALL 
SERMONS,"    "THE    PERFECT    HORSE,"    ETC. 


SEDtfe  #oD-f  age  Illustrations. 

DESIGNED     BY     DARLEY     AND     MERRILL. 
ENGRAVED    BY    JAMES    S.    CONANT. 


BOSTON: 

THE   GOLDEN   RULE   PUBLISHING   CO. 

1877. 


Copyright, 
W.  H.  H.  MURRAY, 

1877. 


BOSTON! 

Stereotyped  by  c.  J.  Peters  &  Son, 

73  FEDERAL  STREET. 


Franklin  Press:  Rand,  Avery,  &■  Co.,  Bos/on. 


IN   MEMOEIAM. 


TO  THE 
MEMORY   OF 
HIM   WHO    "WAS   MY 
FRIEND,  WISE  IK  COUNSEL 
AND  CONSTANT  :  TO  WHOM  THE  EAR- 
LIER PAGES  OF  THIS  VOLUME  WERE  READ, 
AND  WHOSE    APPRECIATION  REMAINS  CHIEFEST 
AMONG    THE     PLEASANT     ASSOCIATIONS     CONNECTED 
WITH  ITS  AUTHORSHIP  :  WHOSE  SUDDEN  AND,  AS  IT  SEEMS 
TO  US  WHO  MOURN,  UNTIMELY  DEPARTURE  FROM  THE  EARTH 
STANDS  AS  ONE  OF  THE   GREAT  GRIEFS  AND  LOSSES  OF    MY  LIFE, 

I  DEDICATE  THIS  VOLUME. 


CONTENTS. 


The  Story  that  the  Keg  Told  Me,      -----  7 

The  Story  of  the  Man  Who  Didn't  Know  Much. 

Part  I. Ill 

Part  II 241 

Part  III. 337 

Sketches.         ______„---- 

I.    En  Boute  :  "  Jet  and  the  Cat." 435 

II.    Crossing  a  Carry  in  the  Dark.       -----  443 

III.    Climbing  White  Face. 451 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


Designed  by  D ablet  and  Mebbill. 
Engbaved  by  J  as.  S.  Conant. 


"He  Shook  Himself"       -_-.._       Frontispiece. 

"  I  Onkivebed  My  Head  "------_  13 

"  And  Count  it  All  0 veb  and  Oveb  Again  "  34 

"  It  Opened  its  Diminutive  Mouth  and  Began  to  Speak  "  131 

"  Shoot  the  Buck  "------.--  171 

"  Go  it,  Lad  " 221 

"Shook  His  Gigantic  Fist  at  the  Judge"      ...  277 

"It  was  the  veby  Climax  of  High  Tbagedy"  441 


/ 


THE  STORY  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME. 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME. 
CHAPTER  I. 

THE  KEG. 

"  There  is  society  where  none  intrudes."  —  Byron. 

TT  was  near  the  close  of  a  hot,  sultry  day  in  midsummer, 
which  I  had  spent  in  exploring  a  part  of  the  shore  line  of 
the  lake  where  I  was  camping,  and  the  tortuous  inlet  which 
led  into  the  same ;  and  wearied  with  the  trip  I  had  made  I 
was  returning  toward  the  camp.  There  was  no  motive  for 
haste,  and  I  was  taking  it  easily.  Indeed,  I  was  in  that 
quiet,  contented  state  of  mind,  into  which  one  easily  falls 
in  the  woods,  where  his  labors  are  dictated  by  his  amuse- 
ments and  his  physical  necessities,  and  not  by  the  duties 
which  carry  with  them  obligation;  and  I  had  done  little 
more  than  drift  with  the  lazily-moving  current.  The  quiet 
inaction,  slow  as  it  was,  corresponded  with  my  mood ;  and 
I  felt  almost  a  regret  when  my  boat  floated  out  from  be- 
tween the  shrubby  banks  into  the  open  waters  of  the  little 
lake. 

It  was  a  very  secluded  sheet  of  water,  hidden  away  be- 
tween the  mountains,  not  marked  on  the  map,  and  whose 
existence  was  entirely  unsuspected  by  me  until  in  my  aim- 
less wanderings  I  had  a  few  days  before  accidentally  stum- 


8  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 


bled  upon  it.  Indeed,  I  doubt  if  in  all  the  woods  there  is 
another  sheet  of  water  so  shut  in  from  observation  and  so 
likely  to  escape  the  eye,  I  will  not  say  of  the  tourist  and 
sportsman^but  even  of  the  hunter  and  trapper.  It  was  be- 
cause of  this  fact  that  I  had  fallen  in  love  with  it.  Here 
was  silence  undisturbed  by  any  noise  of  man's  making. 
Here  I  could  escape  the  prying  eyes  of  idle  and  provoking 
curiosity.  Here  I  could  watch  the  habits  of  animated  na- 
ture and  study  the  mystery  of  her  charm  without  interrup- 
tion. And  here  the  wisdom  which  man  learns  independent 
of  utterance  —  the  wisdom  of  the  unspoken  and  the  un- 
known —  might,  so  far  as  I  was  fit,  be  received  by  me. 

The  first  day  on  the  little  lake  I  spent  in  paddling  around 
its  shores,  in  close  scrutiny  of  them.  In  every  bay  into 
which  I  successively  paddled  I  expected  to  find  a  hunter's 
cabin.  On  every  point  I  doubled  I  looked  for  a  sportsman's 
lodge.  I  circled  every  island  in  my  sharp  quest.  But  in 
vain.  There  was  not  a  cabin  nor  lodge,  a  charred  coal  nor 
mark  of  a  guide's  axo  or  trapper's  knife  in  the  entire  cir- 
cuit. Astonished  and  incredulous,  I  devoted  another  day 
to  the  examination.  I  even  landed  at  every  spot  where 
Nature  had  suggested  a  camp-ground,  and  searched,  with 
trained  eye,  for  the  evidence  of  man's  visitation,  but  found 
none ;  not  even  the  least  trace.  Springs  I  found,  cool  as 
iced  water  and  clear  as  crystal ;  but  neither  mark  of  axe, 
nor  knife,  nor  fire. 

Convinced  at  last,  I  paddled  out  to  the  middle  of  the  lake, 
feeling,  as  I  watched  the  sun  go  down,  the  shadows  deepen 
and  the  stars  come  out,  that  I  beheld  what  no  human  eye 


THE   STORY  THAT  THE   KEG  TOLD   ME.  9 


had  ever  looked  upon  :  a  place  unvisited  by  man  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world.  In  such  a  place  the  sense  of  time 
passes  from  you,  and  the  sense  of  eternity  is  experienced. 
The  years  you  have  lived,  the  years  of  the  world,  are  as  if 
they  were  not,  and  you  seem  to  be  co-existent  with  the 
birth  of  material  things.  Tor  are  not  the  mountains  around 
you. as  they  were  when  God  called  them  up  out  of  the 
depths  ?  And  is  not  the  sky  above  them  the  same  ?  And 
the  great  round  sun,  what  has  changed  it  ?  Yea,  and  the 
water,  is  it  not  as  it  was  when  its  parent  springs  first  poured 
it  forth  ?  In  such  a  place  one  realizes  that  it  is  toil  and 
worry  and  the  grief  of  living,  and  not  years,  which  make 
us  grow  old ;  for  behold,  the  years  rest  lightly  on  whatever 
is  free  of  these.  For  that  which  does  not  work  nor  weep 
is  forever  young. 

And  so  it  came  about  that  the  feeling  that  I  was  the  only 
man  who  had  ever 'Visited  this  lake  was  so  forced  upon  me 
by  what  seemed  indisputable  evidence,  that  I  accepted  it  as 
a  fixed  fact.  The  idea  took  utter  possession  of  me,  and 
became  a  part  of  my  consciousness.  There  was  not  a  sign 
of  man  nor  of  man's  coming  or  going,  on  the  shores,  and 
therefore  I  knew  man  had  never  visited  it  To  me  this  was 
an  absolute  fact,  as  sure  as  life  itself.  Well,  as  I  was  say- 
ing, it  was  near  sunset  when  my  boat  drifted  on  the  current 
that  flowed  with  easy  motion  from  the  little  inlet,  out  upon 
the  quiet  bosom  of  the  lake.  The  sun  was  already  sinking 
in  the  west,  and  the  peculiar  silence  which  attends  the  close 
of  a  summer's  day  in  solitary  places  possessed  the  atmos- 
phere.   The  heat  was  fast  leaving  the  air  and  the  coolness 


10  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 


of  the  coming  night  was  growing  perceptible  to  the  senses. 
My  camp  was  only  a  short  mile  down  the  late,  and  toward 
it,  with  easy  stroke  of  the  paddle,  I  urged  my  homeward 
course.  "  To-morrow,"  I  said  to  myself,  as  I  paddled  along, 
"  I  will  leave  the  lake.  It  is  too  lonely  even  for  me,  and  its 
steady,  unbroken  silence  day  after  day  is  getting  oppress- 
ive. I  am  undoubtedly  the  only  man  that  was  ever  on  this 
sheet  of  water ;  even  the  deer  here  do  not  know  what  sort 
of  an  animal  I  am,  and  the  rats  will  scarcely  get  out  of  the 
way  of  my  boat.  I  will  move  out  of  this  to-morrow,  nor 
will  I  stop  until  I  find  some  traces  of  my  kind." 

Thus  muttering  to  myself  I  paddled  along,  watching  the 
reflections  of  sky  and  clouds  in  the  clear  unruffled  depths 
beneath,  and  thinking  of  the  centuries  in  which  they  had 
received  and  reflected  back  the  changes  in  the  firmament 
suspended  above  them.  I  had  already  come  to  the  point 
on  the  other  side  of  which  my  camp  lay,  when  my  paddle, 
as  it  moved  forward  for  another  stroke,  struck  against  some- 
thing floating  in  the  water.  I  might  not  have  noticed  it, 
perhaps,  but  for  the  fact  that  it  sounded  hollow  as  my  pad- 
dle struck  against  it.  Curious,  because  of  the  peculiarity 
of  the  sound,  to  know  what  it  was,  with  a  quick  turn  of 
my  wrist  I  reversed  my  paddle,  checked  the  boat  in  its 
course,  and. with  a  sharp  stroke  sent  it  backward  along  the 
line  of  its  wake.  As  I  repassed  the  object  I  reached  down, 
and  finding  I  could  raise  it,  lifted  it  into  the  boat.  I  will 
confess  I  started  as  if  an  electric  current  had  been  shot  un- 
expectedly into  me.    It  was  a  KEG ! 

Now,  finding  a  keg  in  some  places  would  not  be  very  sur- 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        11 

prising :  in  a  ship  yard  for  instance,  or  in  a  cooper's  shop  a 
farmer's  cellar,  or  in  a  liquor  saloon ;  for  in  such  places 
kegs  are  plenty  and  you  expect  to  see  them.  Nor  would  it 
have  astonished  me  had  I  met  it  on  a  frequented  river,  or 
in  any  place  where  men  come  and  go  j  but  to  find  a  keg  on 
this  lonely  lake,  where  I  felt  man  had  never  been  —  where 
no  living  soul  had  ever  existed  —  was,  as  you  will  admit, 
reader,  a  startling  experience.  Nevertheless,  there  it  was 
—  a  real  keg,  with  oaken  staves  and  iron  bands,  with  a  bot- 
tom intact,  and  perfect  in  all  respects  save  that  the  head 
was  missing.  As  I  recall  it  now  it  is  really  laughable  the 
way  I  sat  and  stared  at  it.  I  rubbed  my  eyes  to  make  sure 
of  my  sight.  I  tapped  it  with  the  blade  of  my  paddle  and 
rolled  it  half  over  and  then  back  again,  to  make  sure  that 
it  was  what  it  seemed. 

Convinced  at  last,  I  sat  and  looked  at  it,  questioning. 
Where  did  it  come  from?  How  did  it  get  there?  "Who 
brought  it,  and  when,  and  for  what  purpose  ?  Where  is'  he 
who  brought  it,?  Is  he  living  or  dead,  and  where  is  his 
camp  ?  These  and  like  interrogations  I  put  to  myself  as  I 
sat  in  my  boat  on  that  lonely  lake,  in  the  growing  darkness, 
looking  at  that  keg.  "Well,"  I  said  at  last,  speaking  aloud, 
as  one  quickly  forms  the  habit  of  doing,  when  alone,  "well, 
sitting  here  and  staring  at  it  don't  answer  such  questions, 
nor  satisfy  my  hunger,  either  j  and  I  had  better  shove  in  to 
camp  and  get  supper." 

When  supper  was  over  and  the  necessary  wood  for  my 
fire  laid  in  for  the  night,  I  went  out  for  a  while,  as  was  my 
wont,  upon  the  point,  for  a  quiet  smoke,  and  to  observe  the 
appearance  of  the  night. 


12  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

Of  the  beauty  of  such  a  place  aud  hour  those  who  never 
journeyed  beyond  the  haunts  of  men  know  nothing.  The 
sky  was  without  a  cloud.  The  air  was  breathless.  Even 
the  pines  had  forgotten  in  slumber  their  mournful  plaint, 
and  stood  like  so  many  shadows,  dense,  motionless  and 
dumb.  The  water  was  as  moveless  as  the^  atmosphere.  It 
received  the  heaven  as  a  mirror  receives  a  face.  It  stole 
and  appropriated  the  lustre  of  the  firmament,  and  borrowed 
from  the  bespangled  sky  an  ornamentation  for  its  blank 
spaces  as  glorious  as  the  heaven's  own.  The  sky  was  blue- 
black,  and  out  of  its  cerulean  gloom  the  pointed  stars  shot 
gleams  of  many-colored  fire.  The  mountains,  sombre  and 
vast,  rested  on  their  broad  bases  as  if  their  foundations 
were  laid  in  everlasting  silence.  The  odors  of  the  forest 
filled  the  damp  air  like  incense.  A  loon  far  down  the  lake, 
as  if  oppressed  by  the  all-pervading  silence,  poured  into 
the  still  air  the  prolonged  sound  of  its  mournful  call.  It 
entered  into,  and  lingered  sadly  for  a  moment  in  the  air, 
then  passed  away,  making  the  silence  that  followed  even 
more  profound.  Deeply  affected  by  the  spell  of  the  lonely 
place  and  the  hour,  I  rose  from  the  stone  on  which  I  had 
been  sitting,  crossed  the  point,  and  returned  to  my  little 
camp. 

I  busied  myself  for  a  moment  or  two  in  starting  my  fire, 
and  when  the  flames  of  it  rose  clear  and  strong  I  seated 
myself  with  my  back  against  a  pine,  and  half  reclining 
gazed  off  upon  the  lake.  As  I  thus  sat  watching  the  reflec- 
tion of  the  fire-light  in  the  water,  my  eyes  fell  upon  the 
Keg.    It  seemed,  in  some  sort,  a  kind  of  companion  to  me, 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        13 

alone  as  I  was ;  a  visible  bond  binding  me  to  my  kind ;  a 
reminder  of  the  life  that  men  were  living  in  the  great,  roar- 
ing, busy  world  outside  and  beyond  the  lonely  lake  on 
whose  silent  shore  I  then  was  lying.  It  reminded  one  of 
life,  —  or  what  men  call  life,  —  the  getting  and  the  giving; 
the  saving  and  the  spending;  the  loving  and  the  hating;  of 
the  thousands  far  away.  I  fell  again  to  wondering  where 
it  came  from,  and  by  whom  it  was  brought  over  the  moun- 
tains, and  for  what  purpose ;  —  wondering  what  its  history 
was,  and  what  had  become  of  him  who  once  handled  it ;  — 
whether  ho  were  living  or  dead,  and  a  hundred  other  things 
such  as  one  might  fancy  in  such  a  spot,  in  such  an  hour, 
looking  at  such  an  object  so  strangely  found.  It  may  be  I 
was  awake ;  it  may  be  I  was  asleep ;  but  as  I  was  thus 
looking  steadily  and  curiously  at  it,  and  wondering  strange 
things  about  it,  it  seemed  to  change  its  appearance,  and  be 
come  different  from  a  keg  ;  even  a  MAN ;  a  little  man  ;  a 
very  little  man,  —  a  man  not  more  than  eighteen  inches 
high,  with  the  queerest  little  legs,  and  the  funniest  little 
body,  and  the  tiniest  face  one  ever  saw,  —  but  still  a  man. 
And,  then,  standing  bolt  upright  and  looking  straight  at  me 
with  its  little  gleaming  eyes,  that  glowed  like  glistening 
beads,  —  wonder  of  wonders !  it  opened  its  diminutive 
mouth,  and  began  to  talk  ! 

THE  STORY  OP  THE  KEG. 

u  I  suppose,"  it  said  —  and  as  it  began  to  speak  it  leaned 
slightly  toward  me  as  a  man  might  in  lifting  himself  upon 
bis  toes  —  and  its  ludicrous-looking  face  took  to  itself  a 


14  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

grave  expression,  funny  to  see, — "  I  suppose,"  it  said,  "  that 
you  are  very  much  astonished  to  hear  me  talk,  as  a  man 
can,  and  to  know  that  I  even  have  a  mouth  at  all ;  but  I 
have,  sir,  a  very  good  mouth  indeed,  and  a  tongue  inside  of 
it,  too,  as  you  will  learn  before  I  have  done  telling  my  story. 
For  I  have  seen  and  heard  strange  things,  both  before  and 
since  I  came  into  these  woods,  and  had  many  queer  experi- 
ences, of  which  I  propose  to  tell  you  if  you  will  only  sit 
still  and  hear  me,  and  not  go  clean  off  to  sleep  as  you  seem 
inclined  to  do.  0  yes,"  it  continued,  u  I  desire  to  tell  you 
my  story ;  the  story  of  the  man  who  brought  me  here ;  why 
he  did  it,  and  what  came  of  it ;  and  how  he  lived  and  died. 
And  it  is  a  very  sad  story  indeed ;  and  it  pains  me  even  to 
recall  it."  And  here  the  Keg  lifted  one  of  its  little  thin 
hands,  and  placed  it  with  great  emphasis  upon  its  heart, 
"  but  it  contains  a  lesson  which  it  were  well  that  all  men, 
who  strive  to  be  rich  and  are  growing  to  love  money,  should 
hear,  and  I  trust  that  what  I  tell  to  you  to-night,  you  will 
some  day  tell  to  them ;  and  I  trust  it  will  do  them  good, 
and  be  a  warning  to  them,  and  make  them  wiser  than  was 
the  poor  man  who  once  owned  me,  and  who  died  right  here 
on  the  point  off  which  you  found  me,  —  peace  be  to  his 
soul !  and,  indeed,  I  think  he  did  find  peace  in  the  end, 
although  he  found  it  by  a  weary  way,  and  a  steep  one,  and 
one  which  lead  him  nigh  into  hell.  But  I  will  go  back  to 
the  beginning  and  tell  you  all  just  as  it  happened,  and  the 
reason  of  things  as  I  saw  and  felt  them  long  years  ago. 

"  The  earliest  remembrance  I  have  of  myself  is  of  the 
cooper's  shop  where  I  was  made  j  and  a  nice  looking  keg  I 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        15 

was  then,  too,  although  you  may  not  believe  it  judging  by 
my  present  appearance.  But  that  was  many  years  ago, 
and  you  must  remember  that  years  wear  the  life  and  beauty 
out  of  kegs  as  much  as  they  do  out  of  men ;  and  although 
I  look  so  worn  and  weakly  now,  yet  I  can  recall  the  time 
that  my  staves  were  all  smooth  and  clean,  so  that  the  oak 
grain  showed  clearly  from  top  to  bottom  of  me,  and  my 
steel  hoops  were  as  bright  and  shiny  as  steel  can  be.  I 
have  had  many  hard  knocks  since  then,  and  seen  hard 
usage  enough  to  drive  the  very  staves  out  of  me  time  and 
again  j  but  the  cooper  that  made  me,  made  me  on  his 
honor,  and  took  a  deal  of  honest  pride  in  putting  me  to- 
gether, as  every  workman  should  in  doing  his  work.  And 
I  remember  as  if  it  were  but  yesterday — fori  have  laughed 
over  it  many  a  time  when  I  had  poor  reason  to  laugh  at 
anything  —  that  when  I  was  finished,  and  the  cooper  had 
sanded  me  off  and  oiled  me  so  that  my  side  fairly,  shone, 
he  set  me  up  on  his  bench  and  said  to  his  apprentice  boy : 
'  There,  that  keg  will  last  till  the  Judgment  Day,  and  well 
on  toward  night  at  that.' 


"W 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  MISER. 

"  Some  lone  miser  visiting  his  store 
Bends  at  his  treasure,  counts,  recounts  it  o'er." 

Goldsmith. 

ELL,  one  day,  a  few  weeks  after,  a  man  came  into  the 
shop  and  asked  the  master:  'Have  you  a  good  strong 
keg  for  sale  ? '  And  he  put  the  question  in  such  an  earnest, 
half  spiteful  and  half  suspicious  way,  that  I  fairly  started 
within  my  hoops,  and  opened  my  eyes  wide  to  take  a  good 
look  at  him ;  and  a  very  peculiar  man  I  saw,  too,  I  assure 
you.  He  was  quite  a  young  looking  man,  not  more  than 
forty  years  of  age ;  of  good  height  and  strongly  built.  He 
was  a  gentleman  evidently,  although  his  face  was  darkly 
tanned  and  his  clothes  were  old  and  thread-bare.  His  mouth 
was  rather  small  than  large.  His  lips  were  thin  and  had  a 
look  of  being  tightly  drawn  over  the  teetb  —  at  least  it 
seemed  so  to  me.  His  chin  was  very  long,  and  was  joined 
at  the  base  to  large,  strong  jaws.  His  hair  was  brownish- 
black,  and  not  over-abundant ;  indeed,  I  am  not  sure  that 
he  had  not  even  then  begun  to  grow  slightly  bald.  But  the 
remarkable  feature  of  his  face  was  his  eyes.  They  were 
blue-grey  in  color,  smallish  in  size,  and  set  in  deep  under 
the  arch  of  the  eyebrows.    How  hard  and  steel-like  thev 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        17 

■were,  and  restless  as  a  rat's  !  And  what  an  intense  look  of 
suspicion  there  was  in  them,  —  a  half-scared,  defiant  look, 
as  if  their  owner  felt  every  one  to  be  his  enemy,  against 
whom  he  must  stand  on  his  guard,  and  whom  he  might  at 
any  instant  have  to  fight  and  kill.  Ah,  what  eyes  they  were  ! 
and  how  they  came  and  went  to  and  from  your  face,  and 
shot  their  glances  at  you  and  into  you  —  aye,  and  through 
you,  too.  I  grew  to  know  them  well  afterward,  and  to 
know  what  the  strange,  wild  light  in  them  meant  j  but  of 
that  by  and  by. 

•"Have  you  got  a  good,  strong  keg  to  sell,  I  say?'  he 
shouted  to  my  master,  who  was  hammering  away  at  a  bar- 
rel so  that  he  had  not  heard  the  man  enter,  much  less  his 
question.  'A  good  stout  keg?'  said  my  master,  as  he 
turned  around  and  looked  squarely  at  the  questioner.  { I 
should  say  that  I  had,  Mr.  Roberts ;  do  you  want  one?' 
1  Yes/  returned  the  other,  '  I  do,  but  I  want  a  strong  one,  — 
strong,  do  you  hear?'  —  and  he  took  a  step  toward  my 
master  as  if  he  meant  to  strike  him.  '  Strong  enough  to 
hold  the  devil  himself  if  he  were  in  it,  or  a  sinner's  hope 
of  heaven,  either,  if  you  like  that  better,'  and  he  sneered 
the  sentence  out  as  if  the  blessed  hope  of  Paradise  were  fit 
only  to  point  a  fool's  joke.  'Well,  I  don't  know  much  about 
the  devil,  Mr.  Roberts/  rejoined  my  master, — '  not  so  much 
as  you  do,  it  may  be ;  and  as  to  one's  hope  of  heaven,  I 
don't  build  kegs  to  keep  that  in ;  but  there's  a  keg,'  —  and 
my  master  tapped  me  with  his  mallet  until  I  rang  clear  as 
a  bell  — '  that  I  made  with  my  own  hands,  from  the  best  of 
stuff,  and  I  said  to  the  boys  when  I  finished  it  that  it  would 


18  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

last  till  the  Day  of  Judgment ;  and  I  verily  believe  it  will, 
if  white  oak  staves  and  steel  hoops  can  last  that  long.'  '  I 
didn't  ask  you  anything  about  the  Day  of  Judgment,  or  any- 
thing else  the  long-winded  parsons  talk  about  and  frighten 
their  cowardly  followers  with,'  snarled  the  other.  !  All  I 
want  is  a  good  strong  keg — strong  as  can  be  made  of  wood 
and  iron  —  and  if  that  keg  is  what  you  say  it  is,  I  want  it 
and  will  take  it,  if  you  won't  cheat  me  at  the  bargain,  as  I 
dare  say  you  would  like  to  do ;  what  is  your  price,  eh  ? ' 
"Well,  the  price  was  set,  the  money  paid  with  a  muttered 
protest,  and  Mr.  Koberts  hoisted  me  up  under  his  arm  and 
hastened  with  me  out  of  the  shop. 

"  Well,  you  can  imagine  that  I  felt  very  anxious  about 
myself,  and  wondered  as  I  was  being  hurried  along,  where 
I  was  being  taken,  and  what  use  1  was  to  be  put  to ;  but  I 
made  up  my  mind  to  do  my  duty  and  hold  whatever  my 
new  «master  should  give  to  my  trust  so  that  my  maker 
might  not  hear  ill  of  me;  but  I  little  thought  what  was  to 
befall  me,  or  what  I  should  have  to  bear  as  the  years  went 
round.  For  I  have  seen  dreadful  sights  in  my  time,  and 
beheld  things  too  awful  to  declare.  For  I  have  seen  the 
undoing  of  a  man,  and  the  wreck  of  a  human  soul ! 

"  Well,  as  I  was  saying,  my  new  master  hurried  me  along 
without  stopping  to  speak  to  any  one,  although  we  passed 
many,  and  I  noticed  that  no  one  of  all  we  passed  spoke  to 
him,  but  looked  at  him  coldly  or  wonderingly,  and  that  he, 
whenever  we  were  about  to  meet  any  one,  whether  man, 
woman  or  child,  only  clutched  me  the  more  tightly  and 
hurried  on  the  faster.    At  last  we  came  to  a  common  look- 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        19 

ing  sort  of  a  house,  set  back  from  the  road,  with  a  very 
high  fence  built  clear  around  it,  and  a  heavy  padlock  on  the 
gate,  and  great,  strong,  wooden  shutters  at  every  window. 
Into  this  my  master  entered  and  set  me  down  carefully 
upon  the  floor.  This  done,  he  went  back  to  the  door  and 
locked  it,  and  drew  two  large  iron  bolts  or  bars  across  it, 
securing  them  most  carefully  in  the  sockets.  He  then  went 
to  every  window  and  examined  them  to  see  if  each  was 
fastened.  He  carefully  examined  every  room  and  closet, 
even  looking  into  the  ash-hole  and  the  oven  in  the  chimney. 
Then  lighting  a  candle  he  went  down  into  the  cellar,  and 
after  that  up  into  the  attic,  carrying  the  candle  in  one  hand 
and  a  great  club  or  bludgeon  in  the  other. 

"  By  this  time  I  had  made  up  my  mind  that  I  had  fallen 
into  the  hands  of  a  maniac,  and  that  my  new  master  was 
insane.  Leastwise  I  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  him,  or 
what  was  to  be  the  upshot  of  his  strange  ways.  After  a 
while  he  came  back  to  the  room  where  he  had  left  me,  and 
took  me  up  and  set  me  on  the  table;  and  starting  the  upper 
hoop  proceeded  to  take  out  one  of  my  heads.  At  this  I 
was  thoroughly  frightened,  and  kept  my  eyes  on  hira  wher- 
ever he  went,  as  I  wanted  to  see  what  his  strange  conduct 
meant,  and  what  he  would  do  next.  When  he  had  taken 
one  of  my  heads  out,  he  went  to  an  old  drawer  under  the 
cupboard  and  got  a  large  sheepskin,  with  the  wool  closely 
clipped;  and  with  a  pair  of  large  shears  proceeded  to  fit 
me  with  a  lining  of  it.  I  must  say  that  he  did  it  with  re- 
markable cleverness,  and  that  when  he  was  done  with  me 
I  was  lined  as  well  as  any  tailor  could  line  me.    But  what 


20  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

it  all  meant  I  couldn't  guess  j  and  so  I  watched  and  waited. 
For  you  will  admit  that  no  keg  was  ever  treated  as  he  was 
treating  me,  and  that  I  had  good  reason  to  be  surprised. 

"After  he  had  done  lining  me  with  the  soft  skin  he 
seemed  more  easy,  and  less  nervous,  and  he  put  his  hands 
inside  of  me  and  felt  of  his  work  and  was  evidently  pleased 
at  it;  for  he  rubbed  his  hands  together,  and  his  eyes  glis- 
tened, and  he  said  to  himself:  '  There  !  I  call  that  a  pretty 
good  lit ;  I  don't  think  old  Tim,  the  tailor,  would  have  done 
it  better.'  And  then  he  laughed  to  himself  and  rubbed  his 
hands  together  again  as  if  he  had  said  a  very  funny  thing. 
By  this  time  it  was  well  on  toward  night,  and  he  kindled  a 
fire  in  the  fire-place  — a  very  small  fire  it  was,  only  a  little 
thin  blaze  made  of  three  or  four  short  sticks  which  looked 
as  if  they  had  been  picked  up  in  the  roadway,  and  a  hand- 
ful or  two  of  chips.  But  small  as  the  blaze  was  he  mau- 
aged  to  heat  a  little  kettle  of  water  by  it  and  cook  a  cup  of 
tea,  which  ho  placed  upon  an  old  board-table  alongside  of 
a  loaf  of  bread,  and  then  he  sat  down  by  the  table  and  be- 
gan to  eat  the  bread  and  drink  the  tea.  And  this  was  all 
the  supper  ho  had,  and  I  thought  it  very  strange  that  so 
large  a  man  should  be  content  with  such  a  supper ;  but  I 
grew  used  to  the  sight  afterward,  and  ceased  to  wonder,  as 
you  will  when  you  know  the  cause  of  his  frugality. 

After  he  had  done  eating,  he  wrapped  the  remainder  of 
the  bread  carefully  in  a  piece  of  paper,  and  put  it  away 
with  the  little  tea-kettle  in  the  cupboard.  And  then  he  went 
to  the  door  and  re-examined  the  bolts,  and  looked  closely 
at  all  the  shutters,  while  I  stood  and  wondered  what  his 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        21 

strange  actions  meant,  and  why  he  was  so  anxious  that  the 
doors  and  windows  should  all  be  fastened  so  tightly ;  for 
the  neighborhood  was  a  good  one,  and  the  people  law-abid- 
ing, so  much  so  that  the  doors  of  half  the  houses  in  the 
village  were  never  locked  of  nights,  even  from  one  year's 
end  to  another. 

When  he  had  done  all  this,  he  brought  the  club  or  blud- 
geon that  I  had  seen  him  carry  up  stairs  with  him  when  he 
went  up  into  the  attic,  and  laid  it  on  the  table  beside  me, 
and  also  a  large  thick  knife,  with  a  strong  horn  handle, 
which  he  had  taken  from  the  mantle -piece  where  it  had 
been  lying ;  and  then  he  went  to  the  ash-hole  in  the  chim- 
ney, and  brought  the  ash-pail,  which  was  full  of  ashes ;  and 
he  went  to  the  cupboard,  and  brought  an  old  earthen  jar ; 
and  from  under  the  bed  he  fetched  a  bag;  and  from  a 
chamber  overhead  he  brought  a  small  box  j  and  from  the 
cellar  he  returned  with  a  sack,  all  damp  with  earth.  All 
the  while  I  kept  my  eyes  well  open,  you  may  believe,  won- 
dering what  it  all  meant,  and  what  there  was  in  the  pail 
and  the  jar  and  the  box  and  the  bag  and  the  sack.  Well, 
when  he  had  these  all  side  by  side  near  the  table,  he  sat 
down  and  out  of  the  ash-pail  he  took  a  small  pot,  and  hav- 
ing blown  the  ashes  off  it  with  great  care,  he  turned  it  bot- 
tom upward  on  the  table,  and — merciful  heaven  !  what  do 
you  think  was  in  it? 

Dollars  !    Gold  Dollars  ! 

Then  he  took  the  bag  and  untied  the  cord  that  held  the 
mouth,  and  emptied  it  upon  the  table,  and  it,  too,  was  full 
of  dollars  —  gold  dollars !    And  then  one  after  the  other, 


22  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

he  opened  the  jar  and  the  box  and  the  sack,  and  out  of 
each  and  all  he  poured  a  great  stream  of  bright  golden  dol- 
lars ?  Oh,  what  a  pile  of  them  there  was  !  "What  a  heap 
they  made !  How  they  gleamed  and  glistened  !  How  they 
jingled  and  rang!  How  they  rattled  and  clinked  as  ho 
poured  them  down  upon  the  dark  boards !  And  how  his 
eyes  gleamed  in  their  deep  sockets  as  they  saw  the  golden 
stream,  and  how  the  thin  lips  drew  apart  as  the  dollars 
flowed  out,  until  his  teeth  showed  their  line  of  white  back 
of  them,  and  his  hands  shook  and  trembled  as  if  the  palsy 
was  in  them ! 

It  was  a  dreadful  sight  to  see  him  sit  down,  and  leaning 
over  the  table,  run  his  hands  under  the  yellow  heap  and  lift 
the  pieces  up  so  that  the  bright  bits  flowed  over  and  out  of 
his  hollow  palms  and  ran  down  through  his  parted  fingers 
in  shining  streams.  And  then  to  hear  him  laugh  as  he 
played  with  the  glistening  coin !  How  mirthless  his  laugh- 
ter was — hard  and  sharp  and  ringing  like  the  metallic  ring 
of  the  dollars  itself.  Oh,  it  was  dreadful  to  think  that  a 
human  soul  could  love  money  so.  And  he  did  love  it  — 
wildly,  madly  love  it,  — love  it  with  all  the  strength  of  his 
strong  nature.  And  this  he  did  not  disguise  nor  deny  to 
himself ;  but  admitted  it,  and  gloried  in  it,  too,  with  a  most 
wicked  and  blasphemous  glorying,  as  the  Arch  Fiend  him- 
self is  said  to  glory  in  his  own  sin. 

He  would  take  a  dollar  up  and  look  at  it  as  a  father 
might  at  the  face  of  his  favorite  child,  and  pat  it  with  his 
palm,  and  smooth  the  surface  of  it  with  a  finger  tip  as  if  it- 
could  feel  a  caress.    Ah  me,  'twas  dreadful !    And  then  he 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        23 

would  take  a  piece  up  aud  talk  to  it  and  say,  coaxingly, 
"  Thou  art  better  than  a  wife,"  and  to  another,  "  Thou  art 
sweeter  than  a  child,"  and  to  another  yet,  "Thou  art  dearer 
than  father  or  mother."  And  to  the  great  pile  of  shining 
gold,  he  would  say,  as  he  leaned  over  it,  aO  my  beauties, 
the  parsons  may  say  what  they  please,  but  you  are  better 
than  a  far-off  heaven."  Ah,  such  blasphemy  as  I  heard 
that  night !  How  the  sweet  and  blessed  things  of  human 
life  were  derided,  and  the  things  that  are  divine  and  holy 
sneered  at ! 

At  last  he  fell  to  counting  them,  and  by  the  way  he  did  it 
I  knew  he  had  done  it  often ;  done  it  so  many  times  that 
ho  counted  as  men  do  things  by  habit, — mechanically.  He 
would  say :  "  One,  Two,  Three,  Four,  Five,  Six,  Seven, 
Eight,  Nine,  Ten, — GOOD  !  One,  Two,  Three,  Four,  Five, 
Six,  Seven,  Eight,  Nine,  Ten,  —  GOOD  !  "  And  so  go  on, 
faster  and  faster,  until  his  breath  was  gone ;  and  then  he 
would  catch  it  again,  and  start  anew.  "  One,  Two,  Three, 
Four,  Five,  Six,  Seven,  Eight,  Nine,  Ten,  —  GOOD !"  Oh, 
it  was  awful  to  think  of  an  immortal  being  loving  MONEY 
so ! 

For  a  long  time  he  counted  on  j  counted  until  his  hands 
shook,  and  the  sweat  stood  thick  on  his  forehead,  and  his 
eyes  gleamed  and  glowed  as  if  he  were  mad.  And  perhaps 
he  was  mad,  —  as  all  men  are  who  live  for  gain,  and  whose 
hearts  are  fired  with  the  awful  lust  for  gold.  So  he  counted 
on.  And  when  he  had  counted  all,  —  even  to  the  very  last, 
—  the  old  dark  boarded  table  was  covered  thick  with  little 
piles  of  tens ;   and  he  arose  with  a  jump  like  a  maniac, 


24  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

and  stood  above  the  table  and  shouted  until  the  old  house 
rang  again : 

"  Sixteen  Thousand,  Six  Hundred  and  Sixty-six  DOL- 
LAES !  Sixteen  Thousand,  Six  Hundred  and  Sixty-six 
DOLLAES ! " 

Well,  after  a  while  he  sobered  down  and  became  quiet, 
and  began  to  pick  the  dollars  up  and  pack  them  away  in- 
side of  me,  —  carefully,  one  by  one,  as  a  mother  might  lay 
her  children  in  their  beds  to  sleep, —  and  this  he  kept  od 
doing  until  the  last  shining  coin  had  been  taken  from  the 
table,  and  I  was  full  to  the  very  brim.  Then  he  put  my 
head  in  its  place,  and  drove  the  upper  hoop  on  snug,  and 
put  me  in  the  bed,  and  the  great  knife  under  his  pillow ; 
and,  blowing  out  the  light,  lay  down  beside  me  and  putting 
one  arm  across  me  as  if  I  were  a  child,  fell  asleep.  And 
over  the  old  house  in  which  the  miser  lay  clasping  me  to 
his  heart,  I  knew  the  stars  were  shining ;  and  beyond  the 
stars,  with  eyes  that  never  slept,  I  knew  that  the  great  God 
was  looking  down  upon  him  and  me. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  MISER'S  FEAE. 

"I  greatly  fear  my  money  is  not  safe."  —  Shakespeare. 

"  Increase  his  riches  and  his  peace  destroy, 
Now  fears  in  dire  vicissitude  invade, 
The  rustling  brake  alarms,  and  quivering  shade, 
Nor  light  nor  darkness  brings  his  pain  relief; 
One  shows  the  plunder  and  one  hides  the  thief."  — 

Johnson. 

"TTTELL,  things  went  on  in  the  same  fashion  day  after 
day,  and  night  after  night ;  but  getting  worse  all  the 
time.  My  master  did  little  work,  and  of  course  earned  lit- 
tle money,  —  only  enough  to  buy  his  bread  and  tea,  with 
now  and  then  a  little  piece  of  meat.  He  seemed  to  have 
no  desire  to  get  more,  but  was  only  anxious  to  keep  what 
he  had.  And  about  this  he  was  so  anxious  that  it  kept  him 
in  a  fever  of  excitement  all  the  time.  For  days  he  would 
scarcely  go  beyond  the  doorway,  and  if  he  saw  a  man 
coming  along  the  road  he  would  come  in  with  great  haste, 
close  the  shutters  and  bar  the  door  as  if  he  feared  the  man 
was  a  robber  and  was  coming  to  rob  him.  And  indeed  this 
was  his  feeling.  He  was  never  for  an  instant  free  of  the 
fear  of  losing  his  money.  He  would  mutter  about  it  in  the 
day  time,  and  he  would  mutter  about  it  in  the  night  when 
he  was  asleep.    Many  a  time  have  I  heard  him,  in  the  dead 


26  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

of  the  night  when  the  old  house  was  as  still  as  a  tomb,  sud- 
denly break  out  and  say,  "  Oh,  you  don't  want  my  money, 
eh  ?  You  came  for  it,  you  know  you  did,  and  you  hope  by 
crying  to  get  it  out  of  me ;  but  you  shan't  have  a  dollar  of 
it;  no  not  a  dollar!  D'ye  hear?  —  if  it  would  save  your 
soul!"  And  then  he  would  put  out  his  arms  and  wrap 
them  around  me  and  strain  me  to  him,  muttering  and  mur- 
muring about  his  "  Beautiful  dollars.  My  own,  own  DOL- 
LAES,  they  want  to  get  you  from  me.  I  know  them ;  but 
they  shall  never  do  it,  for  I  would  kill  them  if  they  tried." 
And  he  would  grind  and  grit  his  teeth  and  hoarsely  repeat 
the  word,  "  lull,  —  kill,"  as  he  sunk  again  into  a  heavy 
sleep. 

It  was  bad  enough  to  hear  his  muttering  when  all  was 
quiet  and  peaceful,  and  his  sleep  was  undisturbed;  but 
when  the  night  was  stormy  and  wild,  and  the  wind  made 
the  old  house  shake,  and  the  rain  was  slashed  in  great 
sheets  against  the  windows,  and  the  timbers  in  the  frame- 
work creaked  and  groaned ;  —  at  such  times,  he  would  toss 
and  moan  in  his  bed,  shriek  and  clutch  me  with  his  fingers, 
leap  up  and  strain  and  tug  and  strike  as  if  he  were  wrest- 
ling with  an  unseen  person,  who  was  striving  to  carry  me 
away.  Indeed,  waking  or  sleeping,  he  was  tormented  with 
a  deadly  fear ;  and  the  fear  was  born  of  the  suspicion  that 
some  one  would  succeed  in  stealing  me,  and  the  treasure 
in  me. 

And  this  suspicion  it  was  that  had  poisoned  his  whole 
life,  and  made  him  hate  his  kind,  and  driven  him  into  the 
wretched  strait  he  was  in,  when  I  came  to  him.    And  a 


TIIE   STORY   TIIAT  THE   KEG  TOLD   ME.  27 

more  wretched  strait  no  mortal  was  ever  in ;  for  what  is 
worse  than  the  suspecting  of  one's  kind,  even  of  one's 
wife  and  child  ;  yea,  and  of  the  man  of  God  himself,  whose 
love  for  you  is  as  God's,  —  the  deep,  steady,  ministering 
love  of  the  soul.  And  this  was  just  his  case,  as  I  found  out 
one  day.    And  this  was  the  way  it  came  about :  — 

It  was  summer ;  and  for  the  sake  of  comfort  —  for  the 
old  house  was  damp  and  close  —  he  had  left  the  door  wide 
open,  and,  seating  himself  in  his  chair,  had  fallen  asleep. 
Indeed,  I  was  rather  drowsy  myself,  and  was  fast  dropping 
off  into  a  nap,  when  I  heard  my  master  give  a  horrible  yell, 
and  leap  with  a  frightful  oath  to  his  feet.  My  eyes,  as  you 
can  imagine,  came  open  with  a  snap;  and  the  sight  I  beheld 
nearly  upset  me.  In  the  doorway  stood  a  man  and  woman ; 
and  by  his  dress  I  knew  the  man  to  be  the  old  village  pas- 
tor, and  the  woman  I  soon  learned  was  my  master's  wife. 
For  a  minute  my  master  stood  looking  at  them,  and  then 
he  said  abruptly,  "  What  in  the  Devil's  name  did  you  come 
here  for  I " 

"  John,"  said  the  woman,  "  your  child,  Mary,  is  dying ; 
and  I  thought  you,  who  are  her  father,  might  want  to  see 
her  before  she  passed  away ; "  and  her  voice  choked,  and  I 
saw  her  breast  under  her  dress  heave  with  suppressed  sobs. 

"Dyiug,  is  she?  "  said  my  master  brutally.  "  I  don't  be- 
lieve it:  it's  a  trumped-up  story  of  yours  to  get  me  away 
from  here,  that  you  may  steal  my  gold ;  but  you  can't  fool 
me  with  your  lying,  and  you  might  as  well  get  away  from 
here,  both  of  you." 

"  John,"  returned  the  woman,  —  and  as  she  spoke  the 


28  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

great  tears  came  into  her  eyes,  and  her  hands  twitched  con- 
vulsively, —  M  John,  I  never  lied  to  you,  nor  to  any  one,  in 
my  life,  and  you  know  it.  Mary  is  dying,  as  the  parson 
here  can  tell  you  ;  and  I  dare  not  let  her  die,  and  not  give 
you  a  chance  to  see  her ;  for  she  was  the  last  one  born  to 
us,  and  you  did  love  her  before  the  cursed  love  of  gold  in 
you  drove  from  your  heart  all  other  loving.  And  I  said  tho 
father  should  see  the  child  before  she  dies  :  it  is  his  light; 
and  so  I  have  come  and  told  you.  And  besides,  Mary  her- 
self last  night  spoke  your  name  in  her  sleep,  and  talked  in 
her  wanderings  of  you;  and  this  morning  she  said  sud- 
denly, '  I  wish  I  could  see  father  before  I  die.  I  dreamed 
of  him  last  night :  it  was  an  awful  dream ;  and  I  wish  I 
might  tell  it  to  him  before  I  go.  It  might  be  it  would  do 
him  good,  and  win  his  heart  from  his  dreadful  gold.'  And 
so,  John,  I  got  this  man  of  God  to  come  along  with  me, 
that  he  might  bear  witness  to  my  truth,  and  perhaps  speak 
a  word  of  wisdom  to  you." 

While  the  woman  had  been  speaking,  my  master  had 
stood  looking  at  her  with  the  same  scowl  on  his  face,  and 
the  same  hard,  suspicious  expression  in  his  eyes.  Not  a 
muscle  changed,  nor  a  line  softened.  So  he  stood  a  mo- 
ment, glaring  at  them ;  and  then  he  said  to  the  minister, 
who  was  leaniug  on  his  cane,  —  for  he  was  old  and  weak, 
and  his  head  was  white  as  snow,  —  "  Well,  what  have  you 
got  to  say  ¥ n 

"  John  Roberts,"  said  the  old  man  solemnly,  "  I  have 
much  to  say ;  for  I  bring  a  message,  not  from  your  dying 
child,  but  from  your  living  Lord.    I  remember  when  I  bap- 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        29 

tized  you  as  a  child  at  the  altar,  on  the  day  your  pious  par- 
ents gave  you  in  holy  covenant  to  God.  And  I  remember 
when  I  married  you  to  this  woman  here,  your  wife ;  and  I 
remember  your  early  promise,  and  the  happiness  you  had 
yourself  and  made  for  others,  until  the  lust  of  gold  pos- 
sessed you.  And  I  have  known  your  downward  path,  and 
how  that  which  God  meant  for  good,  became  by  your  per- 
version of  its  use,  an  evil  to  you,  —  yea,  an  evil  which  poi- 
soned all  your  life,  and  changed  the  course  of  it ;  turned 
you  against  your  friends,  made  you  brutal  to  your  wife  and 
child,  and  brought  you  to  the  gate  of  hell,  where  you  now 
stand,  —  a  miserable  miser !  All  this  I  have  watched  and 
seen  and  known ;  and  all  this  I  have  warned  you  against 
time  and  again  in  past  years,  and  in  the  name  of  Him  who 
was  sold  to  death  by  a  miser  like  yourself.  And  now  I  call 
upon  you  to  repent,  and  by  true  repentance  and  deep  con- 
trition find  mercy  in  Him  whom  you  have  sold  out  of  your 
heart  and  life,  and  in  whose  eyes  you  are  another  Judas, 
yet  lacking  repentance.  Kepent,  therefore,  and  return  to 
your  right  mind,  lest  a  worse  thing  fall  upon  you,  and  the 
curse  of  your  life  be  doubled  upon  you  in  your  death,  even 
that  as  you  are  now  deserted  of  man  you  may  in  that 
dreadful  hour  find  yourself  deserted  of  God.  And  as  for 
your  child,  as  your  wife  has  said,  she  is  dying,  and  she  has 
asked  for  you.  She  bids  you  come  to  her  before  she  dies. 
For  God  has  spoken  to  her  in  a  vision,  as  he  did  to  some  of 
old,  and  revealed  to  her  what  shall  be  if  you  repent  not,  — 
a  dreadful  death,  iu  a  wild  spot,  with  no  one  nigh,  and  a 
darkness  round  about  you  in  your  death-hour  like  the  dark- 


'SO  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

ness  that  surrounds  the  damned, — all  this  she  has  seen 
with  eyes  prepared  by  the  mystery  of  the  Unknown  to  see 
it ;  and  I  pray  you,  therefore,  as  one  standing  between  the 
living  and  the  dead,  that  you  come  right  speedily  and  see 
your  child,  and  hear  her  message,  lest  she  die,  and  leave 
it  unspoken,  and  what  she  has  seen  in  vision  be  realized 
in  fact,  and  you  be  lost  iu  death  even  as  you  ire  already 
lost  in  life." 

He  paused,  and  his  face  shone  as  one  whu  speaks  beyond 
the  measure  of  the  spirit  of  man  —  even  by  the  measure  of 
the  Spirit  of  God,  —  and  his  aged  hands  shook ;  and  when 
he  had  ended,  his  lips  continued  to  move,  as  with  one  who 
follows  an  exhortation  with  an  inaudible  prayer. 

But  my  master  remained  unmoved.  He  heard  the  words 
of  his  old  Pastor,  as  he  had  the  words  of  his  wife,  with  the 
same  scowling,  sinister  look  in  his  eyes ;  the  same  set,  dog- 
gedness  of  face,  the  same  sneering  expression  on  his  lips. 
He  stared  at  them  a  moment,  and  then  shouted:  "You  LIE! 
both  of  you,  —  you  want  my  money,  you  mean  to  steal  it 
from  me.  Everybody  wants  it ;  there  isn't  an  honest  man 
in  the  world.  All  are  thieves.  All  love  gold.  You  do.  I 
know  by  your  looks  you  love  it.  You  can't  fool  me  by  your 
tears  and  your  preaching.  You  get  out  of  this  house  or  I 
will  kill  you,"  and  he  swore  a  horrible  oath,  and  stepping 
back  a  step  he  seized  the  bludgeon  and  swung  it  round  his 
head,  and  stamped  his  foot  upon  the  floor  and  swore  at 
them  again ;  his  eyes  glowed  like  hot  coals,  and  the  froth 
hung  on  his  lips.  The  woman  ran  screaming  from  the 
house,  but  the  old  pastor  stood  his  ground,  and  faced  him, 
and  said:  — 


TIIE   STORY   THAT   THE   KEG   TOLD   ME.  31 

"John  Roberts,  thou  art  a  doomed  man.  Thou  hast 
denied  the  truth  and  resisted  the  Spirit,  aDd  Satan  hath 
thee  in  full  possession.  The  lust  of  gold  that  destroys 
many  is  in  thee  strong  and  mighty,  and  only  God  can  save 
thee,  nor  he  against  thy  will.  Repent,  or  thou  shalt  perish 
in  a  lonely  spot,  on  a  dark  night,  with  none  to  help  nor 
hear  thy  cries ;  and  thy  gold  shall  perish  with  thee."  And 
so  saying,  he  turned  and  slowly  left  the  house. 

For  a  moment  my  master  stood,  and  then  he  rushed  for 
the  door  and  locked  it,  and  slid  the  great  strong  bars  into 
their  sockets;  and  then  he  came  and  lifted  me  upon  the 
table,  and  patted  me  with  his  hand,  and  laughed  and  said : 
"  My  gold  !  my  gold  !  "  And  when  night  came  he  took  my 
head  out  and  poured  the  shining  pieces  upon  the  table,  and 
played  with  them  for  hours,  and  then,  as  was  his  fashion, 
he  fell  to  counting  them  by  tens  in  the  same  manner  as  was 
his  custom,  saying :  "  One,  Two,  Three,  Four,  Five,  Six, 
Seven,  Eight,  Nine,  Ten.  GOOD  ! "  until  he  had  counted 
them  to  the  very  last  one.  A3  he  counted  the  frenzy  grew 
on  him,  and  when  his  task  was  over,  and  the  old  dark- 
wood  table  was  all  yellow  with  the  gold  pieces  lying  in  stacks 
of  ten,  he  was  wild  in  the  joy  of  his  terrible  lust.  He 
leaped  and  danced  around  the  glistening  coins,  and  shouted 
till  the  old  house  rang :  "  Sixteen  Thousand  Six  Hundred 
and  Sixty-Six  ! " 

And  then  he  put  them  all  back  within  me,  fastened  my 
head  in  tightly,  laid  me  in  his  bed,  laid  himself  beside  mo, 
and,  putting  an  arm  around  me,  he  fell  asleep.  And  I  knew 
that  over  the  old  house  the  stars  were  shiuing  brightly,  and 


32  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

that  above  the  stars  the  Great  God,  with  eyes  that  never 
slept,  was  looking  calmly  down  on  him  and  me. 

But  when  he  woke  in  the  morning  he  was  not  as  he  had 
been,  but  more  nervous  and  savage-like.  He  did  not  unbar 
the  door  during  the  whole  day,  nor  open  the  heavy  shutters 
an  inch,  but  kept  all  closed  and  dark.  And  he  was  mutter- 
ing and  talking  to  himself  all  day.  He  had  the  look  of  one 
who  was  planning  some  deep  plot,  nor  could  I  make  out 
what  it  was ;  but  I  caught  enough  of  his  talk  to  know  that 
he  was  more  suspicious  of  losing  his  money  than  ever,  and 
trusted  no  one,  but  was  afraid  of  all  men,  known  and  un- 
known, and  was  thinking  and  planning  how  to  make  his 
money  safe  and  get  me  to  some  spot  where  no  one  could 
steal  me.  Once  I  heard  him  say :  "  All  men  are  thieves.  I 
suspect  them  all.  No  one  with  money  is  safe  among  them. 
They  will  get  it  yet,  unless  I  go  where  they  cannot  find 
me."    And  then  he  would  curse  his  kind  and  swear. 

At  last  he  suddenly  stopped  in  his  tramping  up  and  down 
the  room,  and  shouted :  "  I'll  go,  go  where  they  cannot  find 
me.  Go  where  I  can  be  alone  and  can  count  my  money  as 
much  as  I  wish,  in  the  broad  day,  under  the  bright  sun  or 
stars,  and  see  it  glint  and  glisten  in  the  bright  light.  Won't 
that  be  glorious !  —  to  be  alone  with  my  money,  where  I 
can  spread  it  all  out  in  broad  day  and  see  it  shine,  and 
count  it  over  and  play  with  it,  with  no  one  nigh  to  scare 
me  nor  make  me  hide  it  away,  for  fear  of  its  being  seen 
and  stolen.  Men,  curse  them,  are  what  I  dread.  I  will  go 
where  there  is  not  a  man ! " 


CHAPTEE  IV. 

THE   MISER  IN  THE  WOODS. 

"  Gold,  gold,  gold,  gold, 
Bright  and  yellow  hard  and  cold."  —  Hood. 

A  FTEE  this  he  said  no  more,  but  packed  up  the  few 
things  he  had,  and  rolled  me  up  in  a  blanket  and  put 
me  in  a  sack,  so  I  could  neither  see  nor  hear  a  single  thing 
that  was  done  or  said,  and  that  is  all  I  know  of  what  hap- 
pened for  many  a  day,  only  I  knew  by  my  feeling  that  I  was 
being  carried,  carried,  CAEEIED,  over  rivers  and  moun- 
tains, and  through  forests  that  were  wide  and  deep,  until 
one  day  I  felt  myself  put  in  a  boat ;  and  on  we  went,  day 
after  day,  night  after  night,  until  one  afternoon,  I  knew  not 
when,  neither  the  year  nor  the  day,  the  boat  stopped,  the 
bag  in  which  I  was,  was  carried  ashore,  and,  for  the  first 
time  for  many  a  day,  I  was  taken  out  of  it,  and  I  saw  the 
sunlight  once  more,  and  behold !  I  was  on  the  very  point 
off  which  you  this  evening  found  me." 

And  here  the  keg  paused  a  moment,  as  one  who  is  tired 
of  rapid  talking,  or  oppressed  by  mournful  memories  j  and 
it  made  a  motion  as  if  it  would  sit  down,  but  did  not.  But 
it  put  one  little  hand  up  to  its  chin  and  rested  for  a  moment 
so,  and  I  thought  it  fetched  a  little  sigh,  but  of  that  I  am 
not  sure,  for  it  might  have  been  a  puff  of  wind  playing  with 


84  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

the  uppermost  tuft  of  some  neighboring  pine,  or  the  sput- 
tering of  the  fire,  for  that  matter;  but  in  a  moment  it  began 
again. 

"You  must  pardon  my  stopping  a  moment,  but  I  have 
not  done  much  talking  for  inauy  a  year  aud  it  really  takes 
the  breath  out  of  me ;  moreover  one  of  my  heads  is  gone, 
and  that  makes  a  great  difference  with  a  keg  I  assure  you ; 
for  we  are  like  a  great  many  men  who  manage  to  get  along 
with  one  head,  but  no  one  sees  how  they  do  it,  and  all 
heartily  wish  they  had  another  in  addition  to  the  one  they 
have,  and  a  better  one  too.  And  besides  I  am  getting 
rather  old,  and  I  doubt  if  I  live  much  longer,  for  ever  since 
I  have  been  standing  here,  by  the  fire,  I  have  felt  that  I 
might  fall  to  pieces  at  any  moment,"  and  the  keg  cast  an 
anxious  look  down  over  itself  and  then  as  if  partially 
strengthened,  at  least,  went  on  :  — 

"  Well,  things  continued  very  much  as  they  were  at  the 
old  house  for  several  weeks,  and  my  master  seemed  happy 
in  the  thought  that  he  had  got  beyond  the  reach  of  men 
and  the  danger  of  their  stealing  me,  and  what  I  had  in  me. 
Every  day  when  the  sun  shone  brightly  he  would  take  me 
down  to  the  point  yonder,  from  beneath  the  shadow  of  the 
pines,  where  the  sun  shines  clearly,  and  pour  the  treasure 
out  in  one  great  pile  and  play  with  it  by  the  hour.  It 
seemed  to  please  him  greatly  to  see  the  yellow  coins  shine 
and  shimmer  in  the  bright  light,  and  he  would  lie  in  the 
sand  and  watch  the  sparkling  heap  by  the  honr,  and  count 
it  all  over  aud  over  again,  and  laugh  and  shout  while  doing 
it  as  he  used  to  do  around  the  old  table  when  we  were  in 


AND  COUNT  IT  ALL  OVER  AND  OYER  AGAIN."    Pago  34. 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        35 

the  house.  And  it  seemed  more  dreadful  to  me  than  ever 
before,  for  here  every  thing  was  so  still  and  solemn,  aud  the 
sky  seemed  so  grave,  the  sun  so  strong  and  bright,  and  the 
mountains  so  vast  and  majestic,  and  all  things  so  suggestive 
of  God  and  Eternity,  that  it  seemed  blasphemy  for  a  human 
being  to  be  thinking  so  much  of  his  money.  Indeed,  the 
sky  and  water  and  mountains,  and  even  the  trees,  seemed 
to  have  eyes  and  to  be  looking  straight  down  at  him  as  ho 
sat  there  in  the  sand  counting  his  money,  as  if  wondering 
what  use  it  could  all  be  to  him. 

But  after  a  time  I  could  see  that  a  change  was  coming 
over  my  master.  He  grew  grave  and  quiet,  and  moved 
about  in  a  noiseless  way,  very  unlike  his  old  fashion  of  act- 
ing and  talking.  So,  gradually,  a  change  came  over  him 
until  he  was  not  at  all  as  he  had  been.  He  left  off  count- 
ing his  money  for  days  at  a  time,  and  when  he  did  count  it, 
it  was  in  a  listless  manner,  just  the  reverse  of  his  old-time 
fashion.  He  would  even  go  away  and  leave  the  yellow 
heap  on  the  sand  unwatched,  and  uncared  for,  while  he  sat 
looking  at  the  shadow  of  the  mountain  in  the  water,  or  lay 
stretched  at  full  length  on  his  back,  a  stone  for  his  pillow, 
his  hands  crossed  on  his  breast  and  his  eyes  gazing  fixedly 
up  at  the  heavens.  You  may  imagine  that  I  was  very  much 
puzzled  at  all  this,  and  wondered  what  it  all  meant,  for  I 
could  see  that  something  was  preying  on  his  mind,  and  that 
a  great  change  was  coming  over  him. 

One  day  he  came,  and  packing  the  gold  within  me,  put 
the  head  in  with  the  greatest  care;  and  when  it  was  done 
he  stood  looking  at  me  a  moment  and  then  said,  "  I  think  I 


36  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

will  never  open  you  again,"  and  he  said  it  in  such  a  sad 
sort  of  a  way  that  I  was  vastly  puzzled.  Indeed,  I  did  not 
believe  him,  but  fancied  that  he  was  not  feeling  over- well, 
and  was  low  spirited  like  because  of  it,  and  that  when  he 
came  to  himself  he  would  come  around  and  count  what 
was  in  me  as  happily  as  ever.  But  a  greater  surprise  was 
in  store  for  me ;  for  when  he  went  to  the  camp,  which  was 
in  this  very  place  you  have  here  to-night,  he  did  not  take 
me  with  him,  but  left  me  there  alone  on  the  beach.  I  did 
not  think  much  of  it  at  first,  for  I  said  to  myself,  he  will  be 
back  by  and  by  and  carry  me  in  with  him  to  the  camp  as 
he  always  does;  but  the  minutes  passed  and  kept  passing 
and  still  he  did  not  come,  and  at  last  I  gave  him  up  and 
decided  that  I  must  pass  the  night  where  I  was,  alone. 
Well,  as  you  can  fancy,  I  felt  very  strangely  in  view  of  it, 
and  rather  nervously,  too,  for  I  had  never  spent  a  night 
alone  by  myself  since  my  master  owned  me,  nor  outside  a 
house  or  tent  either,  for  that  matter ;  so  as  I  have  said  I 
felt  a  little  nervous  about  it.  But  I  made  up  my  mind  to 
be  as  brave  as  I  might  and  put  as  good  a  face  on  the  mat- 
ter as  I  could.  But  it  was  a  very  strange  experience  I  had 
that  night,  and  one  I  have  never  forgotten.  You  see  it  was 
the  first  night  I  ever  spent  alone  in  the  wilderness,  and  it 
made  an  impression  on  me  I  shall  never  forget,  and  al- 
though I  have  passed  many  nights  since  alone  iu  this  soli- 
tary spot,  yet  never  has  there  been  one  to  me  like  that  first 
one.  The  shadows  of  the  mountains  were  so  dark  and 
heavy  that  they  appeared  to  burden  the  lake  as  with  a  pon- 
derous bulk,  and  the  very  water  that  reflected  their  vast 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        37 

sides  seemed  oppressed  by  their  presence.  The  sky  was 
blue-black ;  a  grave  and  sombre  sky  it  was.  In  it  only  a 
few  stars  shone,  and  those  with  shortened  beams.  The 
silence  was  like  an  atmosphere.  It  rested  upon  the  moun- 
tains, brooded  on  the  water,  and  slept  amid  the  shadows  of 
the  still  trees.  And  yet,  dark  as  it  was,  I  felt  that  in  it  was 
an  eye,  and,  silent  as  it  was,  I  felt  that  out  of  it  would  come 
a  voice  —  an  Eye  that  looked  in  steady  but  un wrathful  con- 
demnation upon  me,  and  a  Voice  that  spoke  in  solemn 
judgment,  although  with  inaudible  tones. 

It  seemed  as  if  the  sin  of  my  master  was  being  charged 
upon  me,  and  that  the  whole  universe  was  visiting  upon  me 
its  contempt.  0  !  sir,  I  saw  strange  sights  that  night,  and 
heard  sounds  that  made  me  shrink  within  my  hoops  in  fear. 
Bands  of  angels  all  robed  in  white,  and  flying  on  white 
wings,  came  and  stood  poised  in  the  air  above  me,  and 
pointed  at  me  with  their  white  hands,  and  as  they  gazed, 
their  sweet  faces  dilated  with  horror.  Devils,  too,  great 
black  beings  and  shapes  that  were  shapeless,  whose  faces 
were  those  of  hell,  and  eyes  bloodshot  with  torture,  came, 
and  poising  above  me,  would  point  with  their  black  fingers 
ins iltingly  downward,  and  laugh  with  horrid  mirth;  then 
saL  away  until  their  black  wings  faded  in  the  farther  gloom. 
And  I  heard  moans  in  the  air  as  of  a  woman  moaning  for 
bread ;  and  prayers  as  of  a  dying  child,  dying  with  a  dread 
at  her  heart  for  some  one  whose  sin  lay  on  her  soul ;  and 
sounds  as  of  many  noises  mixed  in  one :  prayers  and  curses, 
oaths  and  snatches  of  hymns.  And  out  of  the  stillness  of 
the  outward  space — the  stillness  of  the  far-off  and  the  far- 


38  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

up  and  the  beyond,  I  seemed  to  hear  a  great  voice  contin- 
ually saying ;  "  The  man  that  loyeth  money  overmuch 
IS  DOOMED.     The   man  that  loveth  money  overmuch  is 

DOOMED." 

"  At  last  the  sun  rose,  and  right  glad  was  I  to  see  it,  but 
little  did  I  dream  when  I  saw  it  come  up  over  the  mountain 
yonder,  what  would  happen  before  it  rose  again.  For  of  all 
days  in  my  life  that  was  the  most  eventful,  and  I  do  not 
expect  you  to  believe  me  when  I  tell  you  what  took  place 
in  it ;  but  I  shall  tell  you  the  truth,  nevertheless,  and  of 
things  just  as  they  happened. 

About  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  my  master  came  to  the 
point  where  I  was,  and  his  face  was  as  I  had  never  seen  it 
before.  It  was  the  face  of  a  man  who  had  suffered  much, 
and  was  suffering.  His  hair  lay  matted  on  his  damp  fore- 
head; his  eyes  were  blood-shot;  his  teeth  set,  and  his  mouth 
white  at  the  corners,  while  his  hands  were  clinched  as  the 
hands  of  one  in  a  spasm.  He  came  and  stood  directly  over 
me,  and  in  a  voice  hard  and  strained  said :  — 

"  For  thee,  thou  cursed  gold,  I  have  wasted  my  life  and 
ruined  my  soul." 

This  he  said  many  times.  Then  he  walked  away  and 
stood  and  talked  to  himself;  and  I  heard  him  say:  "He 
said,  '  Unless  you  repent,  you  shall  die  on  a  dark  night,  in  a 
lonely  spot,  with  do  one  nigh.' "  And  he  kept  repeating, 
*  On  a  dark  night,  in  a  lonely  spot,  with  no  one  nigh."  And 
then  he  would  look  around  him  at  the  trees  and  the  moun- 
tains and  the  solitary  shores. 

After  a  while  he  began  to  walk  up  and  down  the  point, 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        39 

and  wring  his  hands  and  smite  them  on  his  breast,  and  cry 
out :  "  Oh !  if  I  could  do  it !  Oh !  if  I  could  do  it !  Per- 
haps thore  would  be  hope  for  me :  perhaps  there  would  be 
hope  for  ME  ! "  And  he  would  emphasize- the  ME  in  such  a 
plaintive,  pitiful  tone  as  was  never  done,  I  think,  by  man 
before.  Once  he  got  down  on  his  knees,  and  clasped  his 
hands  together,  and  I  wondered  what  he  was  going  to  do, 
for  I  had  never  seen  a  man  in  that  position  before,  and  it 
looked  so  queer ;  but  in  an  instant  he  leaped  to  his  feet  and 
cried :  "NO,  NO  !  It  is  no  use.  Forgiveness  is  not  for  me: 
forgiveness  is  not  fur  me." 

And  so  the  day  passed,  and  a  line  day  it -was,  too,  for 
though  my  master  was  in  such  trouble,  and  the  grip  of  a 
dire  distress  was  on  him,  yet  the  sun  took  no  note  of  it, 
but  shone  as  brightly  in  the  sky,  and  the  trees  swung  as 
merrily  to  and  fro  as  the  breeze  blew  through  them,  and 
the  ripples  ran  laughing  along  the  curved  beach  as  if  there 
were  never  such  a  thing  as  human  trouble  in  the  world. 

Toward  night,  just  before  the  sun  went  dowu,  my  master 
came,  and  taking  my  head  out,  stood  for  a  while  looking  at 
the  gold  within  me;  then  he  said  slowly  to  himself:  " Per- 
haps I  may  have  strength  to  do  it :  perhaps  I  may  have 
strength  to  do  it."  And  then  he  sat  down  on  the  sand  and 
gazed  far  off,  as  one  whose  thoughts  are  not  in  his  eyes. 
And  there  in  the  one  spot,  without  moving,  he  sat,  while 
the  sun  went  down,  the  shadows  of  evening  settled  slowly 
and  darkly  on  shore  and  lake  and  mountain  range,  until  at 
last  night  like  a  mantle  lay  darkly  on  the  world.  There,  in 
the  stillness,  my  master  sat,  his  face  hidden  by  the  gloom, 


40  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

thinking  —  I  knew  not  what.  At  last  he  moved ;  and,  as  if 
too  weak  to  rise,  crawled  along  on  the  sand  to  my  side,  and 
steadying  himself  on  his  knees,  he  placed  his  hand3  to- 
gether, and  lifting  his  face  to  the  dark  blue  heaven  above, 
found  speech,  and  began  to  talk  to  One  I  could  not  see  :  — 

"  0  Thou,  who  art  the  Lord  of  this  great  world ;  whose 
eyes  see  every  creature  thou  hast  made ;  and  whose  ear  is 
open  to  their  cry,  see  me  to-night,  and  hear  my  prayer. 
Bound  have  I  been,  and  bound  I  am,  to  sin.  My  soul,  pur- 
sued by  evil,  knows  not  where  to  flee.  My  life  has  been  a 
hell,  and  out  of  hell  I  seek  deliverance  here  and  now.  Come 
to  my  aid  or  I  am  lost !  Save  me  in  mercy  or  I  am  doomed ! 
Give  thou  me  strength,  for  I  am  weak,  and  may  not  do  what 
I  would  do,  without  thy  aid.  Out  of  this  stillness  speak  to 
me.  Hero  where  no  man  may  hear,  hear  thou  my  cry. 
Thou  Lord  of  heavenly  mercy,  lend  me  thine  aid  ! " 

He  paused,  and  rising  to  his  feet,  lifted  me,  and  started 
toward  the  bushes  where  he  kept  his  boat,  and  placing  me 
in  it  shoved  out  upon  the  lake,  and  paddled  toward  the 
center,  saying  slowly  and  solemnly  to  himself:  "Lend  me 
thine  aid,  0  Lord!  Lend  me  thine  aid!"  At  last  we  reached 
the  center  of  the  lake,  and  having  checked  the  boat,  he  sat 
for  a  moment  without  saying  a  word ;  then  lifting  his  face 
upward  he  said  in  a  low,  sweet  voice :  "  Dear  Lord,  thou 
hast  given  of  thy  strength.  I  thank  thee,"  —  then  raised 
me  in  his  arms  and " 

A  rattle  and  a  crash,  as  ot  pieces  of  wood  lading  sud- 
denly in  a  heap,  and  my  eyes  came  open  with  a  snap.  My 
lire  had  smouldered  down,  and  a  thin  column  of  blue  smoke 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        41 

was  rising,  unattended  by  flame,  in  a  wavy  spiral  through 
the  air.  The  moon  had  found  an  opening  iu  the  pines  over- 
head, aud  was  pouring  its  white  beams  upon  the  whiter 
ashes.  The  keg  I  had  picked  from  the  lake,  heated  by  the 
iire,  had  shrunken  in  its  staves  until  tho  rusty  iron  oands 
afforded  them  no  support ;  and  shaken  by  the  slight  jar  of 
a  crumbling  brand,  or  falling  pine-cone,  perhaps,  had  tum- 
bled inward  and  lay  in  a  confused  heap.  I  rubbed  my  eyes, 
stretched  out  my  chilled  legs,  and  said  to  myself:  "What  a 
queer  dream  !  I  really  thought  that  keg  was  talking  to  me. 
If  it  had  kept  on  much  longer  it  would  have  persuaded  me 
that  the  old  fellow,  its  master,  or  his  ghost,  is  actually  on 
this  lake  now.  Egad !  I  think  it  would  start  even  my  pulse 
a  little  to  see  a  man  in  a  boat  on  this  lake  to-night." 

Half  laughing  to  myself  at  the  silly  suggestion  that  my 
fancy  had  made,  I  rose  to  my  feet,  stretched  myself,  yawned, 
and  stepping  down  to  the  edge  of  the  water  looked  off  upon 
the  lake.  I  am  not  ashamed  to  say  that  I  started,  and  the 
blood  chilled  a  little  in  my  veins  at  what  I  saw.  There,  off 
the  point,  ivithin  twenty  feet  of  ichere  I  found  the  heg,  was 
a  boat  and  a  man  sitting  in  it — motionless  as  if  carved 
from  the  air  I 


CHAPTER  V. 

JOHN  NORTON  THE  TRAPPEE. 

"  Nature's  Nobleman."  —  Thompson. 

"TTTELL,  I  will  admit  that  I  was  surprised,  greatly  sur- 
prised, for  I  knew  that  there  was  not  a  living  being 
on  that  lake  at  sunset — nor  had  there  been  for  days,  or 
years  for  that  matter :  for  there  is  no  place  in  all  the  world, 
save  cities,  where  man  can  go  and  stay  even  a  night  aud 
not  leavo  marks  of  his  presence,  and  on  all  this  lake  shore 
there  was  not  a  trace  of  any  human  being.  Yet  in  spite  of 
all  thi3  evidence  forbidding  the  supposition,  there  sat  a 
man,  paddle  in  hand,  in  a  boat,  not  forty  rods  from  where  I 
stood.  I  knew  that  I  was  well  concealed  from  view,  for 
the  shadows  in  which  I  stood  was  as  dark  as  the  matted 
branches  of  the  rich  cedars  that  lined  the  lake-shore  and 
projected  outward  over  the  water,  could  make  it;  and  so  I 
kept  my  station  without  moving  an  inch,  and  watched. 

For  a  full  minute  the  boat  lay  on  the  level  water  as  if  it 
had  grown  up  out  of  it,  and  was  a  part  of  the  lake  itself, 
so  steadfastly  did  it  hold  its  place  -f  and  I  could  well  guess 
what  was  passing  in  the  mind  of  him  whose  form  was  as 
motionless  as  the  boat,  but  whose  eyes  I  knew  were  search- 
ing every  inch  of  the  shore  line,  and  whose  thoughts  were 
as  busy  as  his  eyes.    He  had  evidently  come  round  the 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        43 

point  as  little  expecting  the  presence  of  man  as  I  had  an- 
ticipated his,  and  some  flitting  spark,  or  the  gleam  of  some 
coal,  —  or  likelier  yet  the  thin  filament  of  blue  smoke  rising 
from  the  smouldering  and  ash-covered  embers,  — had  caught 
his  eye  and  brought  his  boat  to  a  stand  as  quickly  as  a  re- 
versed paddle  could  do  it.  In  a  moment  the  boat  began  to 
move  5  so  slowly,  so  easily,  so  steadily,  that  the  eye  could 
scarcely  detect  the  movement.  I  laughed  silently  to  my- 
self to  see  the  familiar  motion  of  ambushing  a  camp  from 
the  water  side,  done  so  skilfully.  For  whoever  he  was,  or 
whatever  his  errand,  the  man  in  that  boat  knew  how  to 
handle  a  paddle  as  only  a  few  ever  learn  the  art,  —  to  per- 
fection. His  body  never  moved.  The  bent  posture  of  it 
never  changed.  His  head  kept  its  fixed  position.  The 
arms  worked  from  the  shoulder-sockets,  and  were  lifted 
with  a  movement  so  slow  and  gradual  that  the  eye  that 
could  measure  their  extension  and  return  must  needs  be 
keen  of  sight,  nor  lose  its  observation  by  a  wink.  The  boat 
did  not  start  —  it  simply  ceased  to  stand  still;  but  that 
fraction  of  an  instant  at  which  it  ceased  to  stand  still  and 
began  to  move,  no  human  eye  could  tell.  Slowly,  slowly, 
so  slowly  that  at  times  I  doubted  if  it  did  move  at  all,  the 
boat  came  floating  on.  For  ten  minutes  had  it  been  mov- 
ing, and  yet  it  had  barely  covered  as  many  rods.  Then  the 
motion  of  the  arms  died  out  in  the  air,  and  the  boat  again 
stood  still.  But  the  body  of  the  boatman  still  kept  its  fixed 
position,  and  the  arms  still  hung  suspended  in  the  atmos- 
phere, where  they  were  when  the  will  of  the  paddler  had 
checked  them. 


44  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

"  By  Jove  ! "  I  said  to  myself,  "  that  man  acts  as  if  he 
wants  to  murder  some  one,  or  fears  some  one  will  murder 
him :  but  he  understands  how  to  do  a  job  like  the  one  he 
is  at,  and  I  would  like  to  know  how  long  it  has  taken  him 
to  learn  that  use  of  the  paddle." 

A  few  minutes  passed,  then  the  arms  began  to  rise  and 
fall  again,  and  the  boat  stole  slowly  into  motion.  Again 
ten  rods  were  covered;  again  the  little  boat  came  to  a 
pause.  It  was  now  barely  fifty  yards  away,  and  the  full 
moon  made  it  an  easy  matter  to  study  quite  closely  both 
the  boat  and  boatman.  The  boat  was  of  the  common  build, 
sharp  at  either  end,  low-sided  and  light.  In  the  bow  was  a 
pack-basket,  while  a  hound  lay  crouched  in  the  middle.  A 
rifle  was  resting  across  the  paddler's  knees.  Of  his  face  I 
could  discern  little,  because  the  moon  was  at  his  back.  In 
a  moment  he  laid  the  paddle  softly  across  the  boat;  lifted 
his  rifle  as  noiselessly  from  his  knees,  and  rose  slowly  to 
his  feet.  All  this  had  been  done  as  only  a  skilled  boatman 
and  woodman  could  do  it :  not  a  jerk  nor  awkward  motion 
in  the  process,  but  coolly,  deliberately,  and  without  the  least 
suggestion  of  a  sound. 

"  Few  men  could  have  lifted  themselves  from  their  seat 
in  a  boat  like  that  in  tho  style  he  has  done  it,"  I  said  to 
myself,  u  and  few  dogs  would  lie  as  that  dog  lies,  in  a  boat 
manoeuvred  as  that  has  been  for  the  past  twenty  minutes, 
without  stirring  nose  or  foot.  I  wonder  he  has  not  scented 
me." 

That  very  instant,  even  as  the  thought  was  passing  in  my 
mind,  my  ear  caught  the  sound  of  the  lowest  possible  whine 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        45 

from  the  hound  j  but  his  body  never  stirred,  and  his  nose, 
active  as  it  must  have  been,  never  lifted  itself  a  hand's 
width  from  its  resting  place  on  the  bottom  of  the  boat. 

"  Hollo,  the  camp  there  ! "  said  the  man  in  the  boat  sud- 
denly. "  Be  ye  sleeping  or  dead,  man  or  ghost,  whom  I 
find  in  this  lonely  spot  to-night  ? " 

"  Not  dead,  nor  asleep,"  said  I,  speaking  from  the  dense 
gloom  of  the  overhanging  cedar ;  "  but  wide  awake  and 
watchful  as  it  behooves  a  man  to  be,  in  a  place  like  this, 
with  a  man  ambushing  his  camp  in  the  dead  of  night.  Put 
down  your  rifle  and  come  into  camp  if  you  want  to.  The 
sound  of  a  human  voice  coming  out  of  your  throat  makes 
me  feel  friendly,  whoever  you  are.  Come  in,  and  I  will  stir 
up  the  fire  and  we  can  see  how  we  like  each  other's  looks." 

So  saying,  I  stepped  back  to  where  my  wood  was  piled, 
and  proceeded  to  thrust  a  dozen  pitchy  knots  and  a  huge 
roll  of  white  birch-bark  into  the  embers.  The  few  remain- 
ing coals  beneath  the  ashes  caught  eagerly  at  the  pitch  thus 
thrust  against  them,  and  after  an  instant's  sputtering  the 
inflammable  material  leaped  suddenly  into  a  roaring  flame. 
As  the  blaze  shot  upward,  I  rose  from  my  knees  on  which  I 
had  dropped  to  give  the  embers  an  encouraging  puff,  and 
the  man,  leaning  on  his  paddle-staff,  with  the  hound 
crouched  at  his  feet,  stood  before  me. 

For  a  moment  we  stood  and  looked  at  each  other,  as  two 
men  might,  meeting  for  the  first  time,  at  such  an  hour,  in 
such  a  place,  —  looked  each  other  over  thoroughly,  from 
head  to  foot,  and  then  satisfied,  at  least  on  my  part,  I 
said :  — 


46  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  Old  man,  you  are  welcome." 

"  Thank  ye ;  thank  ye,"  replied  my  visitor.  "  I  shouldn't 
have  dropped  in  upon  ye  in  this  onseemly  way,  and  at 
sech  an  onseemly  hour,  but  the  line  of  yer  smoke  took  me 
onawares  like  as  I  turned  the  pint  yender,  for  I  didn't  ex- 
pect to  find  a  human  bein'  on  these  shores,  and  I  half 
doubted  if  a  mortal  man  was  here,  till  my  hound  got  yer 
scent  in  his  nose  and  signalled  me  that  flesh  and  blood  was 
nigh.  And  so  I  ax  yer  pardin  for  coniin'  in  on  ye  as  I 
did,  more  like  a  thief  than  an  honest  man;  but  I  have  mem- 
ories of  this  spot  that  made  me  think  strange  things,  and 
fear  that  all  was  not  right.  Young  man,  what  may  yer 
name  be  ? " 

"  I  am  called,  when  at  home,  Henry  Herbert,"  I  said,  "but 
you  can  split  it  in  the  middle  if  it  would  fit  your  mouth 
better  in  that  way,  and  take  it  half  at  a  time,  and  call  mo 
Henry  or  Herbert  as  you  please ;  for  I  know  one  about  as 
well  as  I  do  the  other,  and  answer  to  either  pretty  readily ; 
and  since  you  are  getting  on  in  years,  and  are  old  enough 
to  be  my  father,  with  a  good  liberal  margin  at  that,  you 
had  better  take  the  first  half  of  it ;  and  so,  if  you  please, 
you  may  call  me  Henry  for  short." 

"  Well,  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  and  there  came  a  beam- 
ing look  of  good  nature  into  his  eyes  as  he  spoke,  with  the 
least  twinkle  of  humor  playing  in  and  penetrating  the  be- 
nevolence of  it,  "I  am  gittin  pritty  well  on  in  years,  and 
ye  don't  seem  much  more  than  a  youngster  to  me,  al- 
though ye  have  managed  to  git  a  pritty  good  growth  in 
the  time  ye  have  been  at  it;  and  perhaps  the  comin'  and 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        47 

goin'  of  years  has  put  some  things  inside  my  head  that  boys 
can't  be  expected  to  git,  while  they  have  been  whitenin' 
the  outside  of  it;  so,  mayhaps,  it  is  well  enough  that  I 
should  call  ye  by  yer  Christian  name,  as  if  I  was  yer 
own  father ;  although  I  have  never  had  a  boy  of  my  own, 
or  a  wife  or  home  either,  for  that  matter;  onless  ye  can  call 
jhese  woods  a  home ;  for  I  have  seen  sixty  year  come  and 
go  sence  I  came  into  them,  and  the  Lord  has  cared  for  me 
in  summer's  heat  and  winter's  cold  through  them  all,  —  so 
well  that  I  haven't  had  a  wish  for  other  company  than  I 
have  found  with  the  animils  and  things  He  has  made,  or  for 
any  other  home  than  He  has  builded  for  me  by  His  own 
hands."  And  the  old  man  paused  a  moment,  and  looked 
lovingly  down  at  the  hound  which  lay  stretched  at  his  feet, 
with  his  muzzle  resting  on  his  paws,  as  if,  in  the  dog,  I 
could  see  one  of  the  companions  which  had  supplied  with 
affection  a  heart  that  had  missed  the  love  of  wife  and  chil- 
dren. 

"  Yis,"  he  continued,  "  the  woods  have  been  a  home  for 
me  for  the  number  of  years  that  measure  the  life  of  mortal 
man,  and  there  is  leetle  in  them  I  haven't  seen,  and  few  are 
the  noises  that  natur'  makes  that  my  ears  haven't  heerd ; 
and  I  know  all  their  paths  and  their  ways  as  well  as  a  man 
in  the  settlements  knows  his  door-yard.  But  that  ain't 
neither  here  nor  there," — as  if  he  was  conscious  of  having 
fallen  into  a  musing  mood,  and  would  check  himself — 
"  that's  neither  here  nor  there,"  he  continued,  "  and  I  am 
glad  to  have  run  agin  ye  here  to-night,  although  the  seem- 
in'  of  things  was  agin  me.    For  I  did  ambush  yer  camp  as 


48  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

a  thief  of  a  half-breed  might;  but  I  was  taken  onawares  by 
yer  camp  smoke,  and  startled,  as  ye  would  well  understand 
to  be  reasonable  in  me,  did  ye  know  what  I  know  of  this 
spot,  and  the  strange  goin's  on  that  has  been  here  years 
agone,  as  I  know  them ;  and  it  seems  queer  to  me  to  find 
a  livin'  bein'  to-night,  where  I  thought  there  was  only  a 
dead  man's  grave.  But  I  am  glad  to  have  run  agin  ye, 
Henry  Herbert,  for  I  have  heerd  of  ye  many  times  in  the 
last  ten  years,  as  one  who  loved  the  woods  and  the  way 
men  live  in  them,  and  knowed  the  proper  use  of  a  rifle,  and 
how  to  handle  the  paddle  as  some  born  to  the  use  of  it 
never  lam  it ;  and  I  have  heerd  that  yer  eye  was  keen  and 
finger  sure,  as  a  hunter's  should  be,  and  that  ye  let  no  buck 
run  off  with  yer  lead,  but  dropped  him  dead  in  his  tracks 
where  he  stood  —  which  is  marciful  and  decent  in  a  man 
who  handles  a  rifle.  And  I  have  heerd,  mor'over,  that  ye 
loved  to  be  alone,  and  to  find  things  out  that  natur'  never 
tells  to  a  company;  and  that  ye  boated  up  and  down  through 
the  woods  all  by  yerself,  sleepin'  where  night  overtook  ye 
like  an  honest  man,  and  I  know'd  that  I  should  some  day 
cross  yer  trail  and  jine  ye;  but  I  leetle  thought  to  run  agin' 
ye  here  to-night,  for  I'd  no  idee  that  mortal  man  know'd 
this  lake,  save  me  and  him  whose  body  I  buried  here  eleven 
years  gone  this  fall."  And  the  old  man  paused,  seated  him- 
self on  the  butt  of  a  log,  and  gazed  with  a  solemn  look  in 
his  face  into  the  fire. 

I  did  not  feel  quite  like  breaking  in  on  his  meditations, 
whatever  they  might  be;  and  so  I  stood  and  looked  at  him. 
In  a  few  moments  he  began :  — 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        49 

"  I  ax  yer  pardin  if  it  be  axin'  too  much  of  ye,  but  I've 
fetched  my  boat  through  fifty  miles  to-day,  and  it's  nigh  on 
twenty  hoars  sence  I've  tasted  food  :  not  but  that  I  could 
have  had  enough  —  for  I  run  agin  a  buck  on  Salmon  Lake 
this  arternoon  jest  as  the  sun  was  goin'  down,  that  was 
big  enough  to  keep  a  Dutch  parson  in  venison  for  a  week, 
and  that  sizes  him  pritty  big,  as  ye  know,  if  ye  ever  camped 
with  one  of  'em" — and  the  old  man  opened  his  mouth  and 
laughed  a  peculiar,  good-natured  laugh,  that  showed  more  on 
the  face  than  it  gave  forth  noise — "but  I  was  in  a  hurry  to  git 
through  here  and  couldn't  stop  to  dry  him,  and  I  never  set- 
tle lead  into  any  cretur  I  can't  use  for  meat,  onless  it  be  a 
fur-bearin'  animil  or  a  wicked  panther.  So  I  jest  paddled 
up  to  him  ontil  I  could  flirt  some  water  onto  his  shoulders, 
and  I  landed  about  two  quarts  on  his  back,  and  the  way 
the  cretur  jumped  sot  my  eyes  swimmin'."  And  here  the 
old  man  laughed  again  in  his  own  peculiar  fashion.  "  But, 
as  I  was  sayin',  I  haven't  tasted  food  sence  the  last  day 
dawn,  and  feel  sort  of  empty  like ;  and  somehow  latterly 
the  night  mists  seem  to  git  into  me  more'n  they  used  to 
when  I  was  younger,  for  age  thins  the  blood,  and  cools  it, 
too,  for  that  matter ;  an'  if  ye  feel  like  botherin'  yerself 
that  much  ye  may  cook  me  a  pot  of  tea  and  give  me  a  cold 
cake,  if  one  be  lyin'  round ;  and  if  ye  happen  to  have  a  bit 
of  buck  ye  fear  won't  keep  till  mornin'  I  guess  I  could  keep 
it  for  ye  in  a  spot  where  I've  put  a  good  deal  of  that  kiud 
of  meat  in  the  last  sixty  year  j"  and  the  old  man  laughed 
again,  in  his  hearty,  noiseless  manner,  as  if  greatly  pleased 
at  his  own  homely  and  innocent  wit. 


50  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  Old  man,"  said  I,  "  you  just  sit  on  that  log  a  few  min- 
utes, and  I  will  give  you  a  drink  of  tea  that  will  warm  your 
blood  as  if  forty  years  had  been  taken  from  your  record ; 
and  as  for  cold  cakes,  I  don't  keep  that  article,  but  here  is 
some  batter"  —  and  I  uncovered  a  pan  standing  a  little 
back  from  the  fire  —  "that  will  make  cakes  so  light  that 
you  will  have  to  hold  them  down  with  your  fork ;  and  lock 
at  that"  —  and  I  swung  out  of  my  birch  bark  cupboard  a 
roll  of  tenderloin  steak  twelve  or  fourteen  inches  long  — 
"  I'll  spit  that  for  you  so  that  it  will  dissolve  in  your  mouth, 
and  go  down  your  throat  like  honey ;  and  you  and  I  will 
have  a  feast  that  will  make  us  feel  as  full  as  a  doe  in  the 
lily-pads, — for  I  know  whom  I  have  for  my  guest  to-night 
as  well  as  if  you  had  told  me  your  name,  and  right  glad  am 
I  to  have  the  best  shot  that  ever  drew  bead,  and  the  best 
boatman  that  ever  feathered  a  paddle,  and  as  honest  a  guide 
as  ever  drew  breath,  in  my  camp,  and  there's  my  hand,  and 
you  are  welcome  to  all  I  have  in  my  pack,  and  to  all  I  can 
do  for  you,  John  Norton "  —  and  I  stretched  my  hand  out 
to  the  old  man,  who  met  its  palm  with  his  own  in  a  hearty, 
hunter-like  grip. 

"  Well,  well,"  laughed  the  old  man,  as  he  re-seated  him- 
self on  the  log,  while  I  bestirred  myself  with  preparations 
for  the  meal,  "  I  sorter  suspicioned  that  ye  knowed  who  I 
was,  but  I  didn't  know  for  sartin ;  for  ye  carry  a  mighty 
steady  face,  and  ye  didn't  let  ou  with  yer  eyes  what  ye  was 
thinkin'  about,  as  most  youngsters  do ;  but  I  take  yer  tvel- 
come  in  the  same  way  ye  give  it,  and  if  old  John  Norton 
can  do  anything  to  make  yer  stay  in  the  woods  more  pleas- 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        51 

ant-like  to  ye,  or  lam  ye  any  trick  of  beast  or  bird,  or  tell 
ye  any  thing  of  naturis  ways  that  ye  haven't  larnt  as  yit  — 
ye  may  depend  on  it,  young  man,  that  he  will  larn  it  to  ye;" 

—  and  so  saying  he  relapsed  into  silence,  but  watched  me 
steadily  as  1  kept  on  with  my  work. 

In  a  few  minutes  the  bark  that  served  for  a  table  was  put 
in  front  of  him,  with  the  plates  and  cups,  the  pepper,  salt, 
sugar,  and  such  other  luxuries  as  my  pack  afforded,  and  I 
poured  the  old  man  a  cup  of  the  best  that  ever  came  from 
Formosa,  while  I  kept  on  turning  the  cakes  and  the  steak. 

"  Well,  now,  that's  the  best  tea  I  ever  tasted,  for  sartin," 
said  the  old  man,  as  he  sipped  the  stimulating  beverage 

—  u  it's  as  smooth  as  spring  water,  and  goes  down  a  man's 
throat  as  easy  as  an  otter  goes  into  a  crick.  I  never  tasted 
drink  that  the  Lord  hadn't  made,  for  sixty  year  of  my  life, 
but  latterly,  'specially  at  night,  or  when  over-tired,  it  does 
seem  to  me  that  a  few  leaves  of  tea,  judiciously  steeped  as 
ye  have  done  it,  sort  of  strengthens  the  water  and  makes 
a  kind  of  improvement  on  the  Lord's  own  work,  if  it  be 
right  for  a  mortal  to  say  so ;  leastwise,"  he  added,  as  he 
took  a  deeper  quaff,  "  this  is  mighty  pleasant  warmin'  to 
the  ribs,  and  sort  of  makes  a  man  feel  inhabited-like  inside, 
and  not  empty  as  a  shanty  with  nobody  in  it;"  and  the  look 
of  placid  contentment  that  came  to  the  old  man's  face  was 
a  picture  to  see. 

By  this  time,  the  meal  was  ready,  and  we  sat  down  on 
either  side  of  the  bark  table,  in  the  glow  of  the  fire-light, 
to  eat. 

"  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  as  he  drew  his  hunting  knife 


52  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

through  the  tenderloin  roll,  and  marked  the  ruddy  juices 
that  oozed  out,  and  the  puff  of  odorous  steam  which  as- 
cended as  the  blade  clove  it,  "  this  meat  is  cooked  hunter- 
like, and  sort  of  encourages  the  teeth  to  git  into  the  center 
of  it.  I  have  often  noted  that  cookin'  was  a  kind  of  gift, 
and  couldn't  be  larnt  out  of  books  no  more  than  holdin'  a 
rifle  or  featherin'  a  paddle  properly  can  be  larnt  in  the  set- 
tlements. The  Lord  gives  one  man  one  set  of  gifts  and 
another  another,  and  cookin'  and  huntin'  are  things  of 
natur',  and  not  of  readin',  and  they  don't  often  go  all  of 
them  to  one  man,  although  in  yer  case,  Henry,  the  Lord  has 
been  very  marciful  and  gracious-like  in  his  treatment  of  ye, 
—  for  I  have  heerd  ye  are  a  great  scholar,  and  love  the 
knowledge  that  the  schools  give ;  and  I  have  many  things 
I  want  to  ax  ye  of  —  things  I  have  heerd,  but  that  seem 
onreasonable  to  me ;  but,  depend  on  it,  Henry,  the  best  gift 
the  Lord  has  given  ye  is  yer  love  of  natur'  and  the  things 
that  go  with  it  —  a  keen  eye,  a  quick  finger,  a  strong  back, 
and  a  conscience  that  can  meet  him  in  the  solitude  of  these 
waters  and  hills  and  not  be  afeared;  for  a  wicked  man  can't 
bear  the  presence  of  the  Maker  of  these  solitudes,  as  I  have 
good  reason  to  know" — and  here  the  old  man  paused  a 
moment  and  gazed  steadily  into  the  fire — "yis,"he  re- 
sumed, "it  is  wonderful  that  he  should  have  gin  ye  the  love 
of  books  and  of  natur'  both,  but  I  dare  to  say,  he  has  his 
favorites,  as  I  have  often  noted  mothers  have  among  their 
children,  and  I  can  see  jest  how  it  may  be  with  him;  but 
how  he  came  to  give  ye  the  gift  of  cookin'  with  all  the 
other  ones,  is  wonderful,  and  I  can't  understand  it,  but"  — 


THE   STORY  TIIAT   THE   KEG   TOLD   ME.  53 

A  long,  loud  cry,  beginning  with  a  thin  whine  and*  swell* 
ing  up  into  a  terrific  yell,  arose  into  the  still  air,  from  the 
other  side  of  the  lake,  held  possession  of  the  atmosphere 
for  a  full  minute,  then  died  away  in  successive  echoes, 
leaving  the  stillness  deeper  than  before  the  terrible  sound 
disturbed  it  and  broke  suddenly  in  upon  the  old  man's 
speech.  For  a  full  minute  he  sat  motionless,  with  his  fork 
half  way  between  the  plate  and  his  mouth,  and  his  mouth 
half  opened  to  receive  it,  and  not  till  the  last  mimic  imita- 
tion of  the  frightful  scream  had  died  away  along  the  hills 
that  bordered  the  head  of  the  lake,  did  a  muscle  of  his 
figure  move. 

"  Yis,  I  know  the  varmint,  and  an  ugly  one  he  is,  too.  I 
heerd  him  iu  the  balsam  thickets  as  I  come  down  the  inlet, 
and  he  trailed  me  for  a  full  mile,  as  they  will  when  hungry ; 
but  the  cretur"  was  too  cowardly  to  show  himself  in  the 
mash  where  the  moon  would  tech  him,  for  a  panther  has  a 
keen  nose  for  the  smell  of  powder,  and  he  scented  the  muz- 
zle of  my  rifle  and  knowed  I  had  a  wepon.  I  hoped  he 
would  show  himself  a  minit,  or  that  the  swish  of  the  mash 
grass  as  he  tramped  through  it  would  make  a  line  for  me, 
for  I  thought  I  knowed  his  whine,  and  I  said  to  myself,  if 
he  gives  me  half  a  chance  I'll  let  light  into  him,  and  sort  of 
square  accounts  with  the  cretur  that's  been  some  time 
standin'  —  but  he  is  a  cowardly  chap  and  "  — 

Again  the  terrible  scream  leaped  into  the  air,  —  this  time 
wild  and  savagely  fierce  at  the  start,  and  so  harsh  that  it 
seemed  to  tear  the  silence  into  shreds  in  very  fury;  and 
the  last  hoarse  aspiration  of  it  was  so  terrible  in  its  wrath- 


54  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

ful  strength  that  the  trees,  water  and  air  seemed  to  shrink 
back  and  shiver  in  terror  at  its  injection  into  the  peaceful 
atmosphere. 

"Aye,  ay 3 !  I  know  ye  now,"  continued  the  old  man,  "and 
a  truer  hound  than  ye  murdered  for  me  eleven  year  ago, 
come  next  month,  never  nosed  a  track  or  guarded  a  hunt- 
er's camp.  Ye  can  yell  till  ye  are  hoarse,  but  if  the  Lord 
spares  this  old  body,  and  my  eyes  don't  get  dim  for  another 
month,  I'll  look  ye  up  some  day  and  give  ye  the  contents 
of  a  grooved  barrel  that  carries  a  half-ounce  bullet,  and 
chambers  eighty  grains  of  powder,  and  ye  shall  larn  the 
difference  between  a  hunter  used  to  the  sights  and  a  poor 
hound  that  has  nothin'  but  his  teeth  and  his  courage  to  fight 
ye  with.  I  guess,"  continued  the  old  man,  as  he  rose  to  his 
feet,  "  I  had  better  bring  up  my  pack  and  my  rifle,  for  I 
noted  by  the  direction  the  echoes  took  that  the  brute  yen- 
der  is  trailin'  down  the  lake,  and  he  may  cross  the  outlet  at 
the  foot  and  scout  up  this  side,  for  his  cry  shows  he  is  hun- 
gry, and  he  has  seen  our  fire  and  may  think  that  he  can 
play  his  capers  on  us ;  but  he  will  find  the  two  liveliest 
morsels  he  ever  tried  to  put  his  teeth  into,  the  varmint ! " 
and  laughing  to  himself  at  his  own  thought  he  started  for 
the  beach. 

"  Henry,"  said  he,  as  he  stood  leaning  over  the  end  of 
his  boat,  "  come  here  and  we  will  hist  this  boat  into  camp. 
I  dare  say  I  am  foolish,  but  somehow  I  sorter  feel  that  this 
lake  shore  isn't  quite  the  spot  to  leave  an  honest  man's 
boat  on.  I  can  remember  when  to  have  done  it  would  have 
cost  a  man  his  boat  and  scalp,  too,  onless  the  Lord  marci- 
fuly  kept  his  eyes  open  by  dreams." 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        55 

In  a  moment  the  boat  was  placed  where  the  old  man 
wished  it;  and  setting  his  back  against  its  side  for  a  sup- 
port, he  unlaced  his  moccasins,  and  thrust  his  smoking  feet 
out  toward  the  fire.  Taking  a  pipe  from  my  pocket,  I  filled 
it  with  a  choice  brand  of  tobacco  I  had  in  my  pouch,  and 
proffered  it  to  him. 

"  Thank  ye,  thank  ye,  Henry,"  said  he,  as  he  made  a  mo- 
tion of  rejection  of  the  offer  with  his  hand,  "I  thank  ye  for 
the  kindness  ye  mean  in  yer  heart,  but  if  it  be  all  the 
sair  .e  to  ye  I  won't  take  it.  I  know  it  is  a  comfort  to  ye, 
and  I  am  glad  to  see  ye  enjoy  it,  but  I  have  never  used  the 
weed ;  not  for  the  reason  that  I  had  a  conscience  in  the 
matter,  but  because  the  Lord  gave  me  a  nose  like  a  hound's, 
and  better  too,  I  dare  say,  for  I  doubt  if  a  hound  knows 
the  sweetness  of  things,  or  can  take  pleasure  from  the 
scent  that  goes  into  his  nostrils.  But  he  has  been  more 
marciful  to  man  —  as  it  was  proper  he  should  be  —  and  gin 
him  the  power  to  know  good  and  evil  in  the  air;  and  smell- 
in'  has  always  been  one  of  my  gifts,  and  I  couldn't  make 
ye  understand,  I  dare  say,  the  pleasure  I've  had  in  the 
right  exercise  of  it.  For  ye  know  that  natur'  is  no  more 
bright  to  the  eye  than  it  is  sweet  to  the  nose ;  and  I've 
never  found  a  root  or  shrub  or  leaf  that  hadn't  its  own 
scent.  Even  the  dry  moss  on  the  rocks,  dead  and  juiceless 
as  it  seems,  has  a  smell  to  it,  and  as  for  the  'arth  I  love  to 
put  my  nose  into  the  fresh  sile,  as  a  city  woman  loves  the 
nozzle  of  her  smellin'-bottle.  Many  and  many  a  time  when 
alone  here  in  the  woods  have  I  taken  my  boat  and  gone  up 
into  the  inlet  when  the  wild  roses  was  in  blossom,  or  down 


56  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

into  some  bay  where  the  white  lily  cups  was  all  open,  and 
sot  in  my  boat  and  smelt  them  by  the  hour,  and  wondered 
if  heaven  smelt  so.  Yis,  I  have  been  sartinly  gifted  in  my 
nose,  for  I've  always  noted  that  I  smelt  things  that  the 
men  and  women  I  was  guidin'  didn't,  and  fouud  things  in 
the  air  that  they  never  suspicioned  of,  and  I  feered  that 
smokin'  might  take  away  my  gift,  and  that  if  I  got  the 
strong  smell  of  tobacco  in  my  nose  once  I  should  never 
scent  any  other  smell  that  was  lesser  and  finer  than  it. — 
So  I  have  never  used  the  weed,  bein'  sort  of  naterally 
afeerd  of  it ;  but  what  is  medicine  for  one  man  may  be 
pisen  for  another,  as  I  have  noted  in  animils,  for  the  bark 
that  fattens  the  beaver  will  kill  the  rat;  and  so  ye  must 
take  no  offence  at  what  I've  said,  but  smoke  as  much  as 
ye  feel  moved  to,  and  I  will  scent  the  edges  of  the  smell  as 
it  comes  over  my  side  of  the  fire,  and  so  we'll  sort  of  jine 
works  —  as  they  say  in  the  settlements  —  ye  do  the  smok- 
in' and  I'll  do  the  smellin',  and  I  think  I've  got  the  light- 
est end  of  the  stick  at  that."  And  the  old  man  laughed  in 
every  line  of  his  time-wrinkled  fare,  at  the  smartness  of 
his  saying. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  OLD  TRAPPER'S  AMBUSH. 

"  I  am  out  of  humanity's  reach; 

I  must  finish  my  journey  alone, 

Never  hear  the  sweet  music  of  speech — 

I  start  at  the  sound  of  my  own."  —  Cowper. 

GO  we  sat  on  either  side  of  the  fire,  filled  with  that  con- 
tentment which  pervades  the  mind  when  the  body  has 
eaten  its  fill  of  hearty  food,  and  the  process  of  digestion 
is  going  forward  under  the  conditions  of  perfect  health  and 
agreeable  surroundings.  For  several  minutes  we  sat  in 
silence,  too  physically  happy  on  my  part  to  think ;  and  the 
old  trapper  seemed  to  have  undergone  a  change  of  mood, 
for  the  play  of  humor  had  left  his  features,  and  his  coun- 
tenance had  settled  into  a  solemn  repose. 

" I  was  thinkin',"  he  said  at  length  —  "I  was  thinkin'  of 
things  that  happened  here  long  years  ago,  when  I  fust  come 
through  this  lake.  I  can  tell  ye,  Henry,  strange  doin's  have 
been  done  here,  and  my  thoughts  have  been  on  the  back 
trail  for  several  days  now,  and  I  had  a  feelin'  come  to  me 
that  I  oughter  visit  this  lake,  and  sorter  see  how  things 
looked  ;  for  there's  a  grave  over  there  on  the  pint,  that  I 
made  with  my  own  hands,  and  I  buried  the  body  of  a  man 
in  it  that  had  no  mourner  at  his  funeral,  oniess  mo  and  my 
hound,  there,  might  be  counted  as  sech.    And  I  thought  I 


58  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

would  come  through  here  and  see  if  the  grave  wanted 
mendin',  although  I  dare  say  it  lies  quiet  enough,  and  on- 
distarbed,  for  I  built  it  up  in  good  shape,  and  sodded  it 
over  as  the  man  gave  me  word  to  do; — not  that  he  ordered 
it,  but  because  I  knowed  it  was  his  wish,  for  he  said  the 
day  he  died :  '  I  wish  when  I  am  gone  my  grave  might  be 
sodded  as  they  sod  them  down  on  the  coast  where  I  was 
born.'  And  I  said  to  him,  f  Don't  worry  on  that  score,  for  I 
will  make  it  as  ye  tell  me,  so  far  as  me  and  the  hound  can 
do  it;'  and  then  he  told  me  how  he  wanted  it  done,  and  I 
will  say  he  talked  rational-like  from  the  way  he  looked  at 
it,  and  I  did  it  jest  as  he  told  me,  as  the  hound  there  would 
bear  witness  if  he  could  speak ;  and  somehow,  latterly  I 
got  the  feelin'  into  me  that  I  oughter  come  through  here, 
and  sort  of  see  to  it,  and  that's  the  reason  that  I  am  here, 
although  sence  meetin'  you  I  have  wondered  if  I  warnt 
brought  here  to  meet  the  livin'  and  not  the  dead ;  for  the 
Lord  don't  always  tell  what  he  starts  us  on  a  journey  for, 
or  what  we  are  to  find  at  the  other  end  of  it,  for  the  tar- 
miuation  of  things  is  marcifully  hidden  from  the  beginuin', 
and  the  two  ends  of  a  trail  never  look  alike." 

While  the  Old  Trapper  had  been  thus  moralizing,  he  had 
risen  to  his  feet,  and  turning  round  with  his  back  to  the 
fire  he  stretched  a  hand  out  toward  the  lake,  saying :  — 

"  It  is  not  often,  Henry,  that  ye  see  so  bright  a  moon  as 
that,  even  here  in  the  woods  where  the  air  is  as  pure  as  the 
Lord  can  make  it ;  and  it  calls  up  memories.  It  is  eleven 
year  this  very  night  that  me  and  the  houud  slept  here,  and 
a  solemn  night  it  was,  too,  for  the  man  had  died  at  sunset, 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        59 

and  his  body  lay  right  there  where  the  moon  whitens  the 
'arth  by  that  dead  root.  —  God  of  heaven,  Henry,  what  is 
that ! " 

The  old  man's  startled  ejaculation  brought  me  to  my  feet 
as  if  the  panther  were  on  me,  and  glancing  at  the  spot  he 
had  indicated  by  his  looks  and  gesture,  as  the  exclamation 
tore  out  of  his  mouth,  I  beheld  only  the  scattered  portions 
of  the  Keg.  Not  knowing  what  to  make  of  the  old  man's 
excited  action,  I  said :  — 

"  That  ?  that  is  only  a  keg  I  picked  ur/in  the  lake  this 
evening." 

For  a  full  minute  the  Old  Trapper  stood  gazing  stead- 
fastly at  it,  and  then  he  stepped  to  the  spot  where  the  rem- 
nants of  the  keg  lay,  and  picking  up  a  stave  he  contem- 
plated it  a  minute  or  two  in  grave  and  solemn  silence,  and 
then  returning  to  the  fire  he  re-seated  himself  on  the  log, 
and  still  holding  the  piece  of  wood  in  his  hand,  said :  — 

"  The  ways  of  the  Lord  is  mysterious,  and  his  orderiu's 
past  findin'  out ;  and  some  of  his  creturs  are  born  tor  good 
and  some  for  evil,  and  how  he  ontangles  the  strands  in  the 
end  is  beyend  our  knowin'.  But  perhaps  in  the  long  run, 
he  brings  the  wrong  to  the  right,  and  so  makes  the  evil  in 
the  world  to  praise  him.  Ah  me  !  ah  me  !  what  a  load  the 
man  carried  while  off  the  trail,  like  a  blind  moose  walkin' 
in  a  circle;  but  before  he  tired  I  reckon  he  struck  the 
blazed  line  that  led  him  to  the  Great  Clearin'.  Leastwise,  it 
looked  so."  And  the  old  man  paused,  gazing  fixedly  at  the 
bit  of  the  keg  that  he  held  in  his  hand.  In  a  moment  he 
resumed :   "  I  have  a  mind,  Henry,  to  tell  ye  the  story  of 


60  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

the  man  who  owned  that  keg  once,  as  far  as  I  know  it,  and 
onless  ye  feel  sleepy-like  I  will  tell  ye  what  happened  here 
years  ago,  and  what  I  know  of  the  man  whose  body  lies 
buried  there  on  yender  pint  —  for  a  strange  tale  it  is,  and  a 
true  one,  and  the  teachin's  of  it  is  solemn." 

I  was  thoroughly  awake,  by  this  time,  and  urged  the  old 
man  to  proceed.    After  a  moment's  silence,  he  began :  — 

**  Well,  it's  now  eleven  years  gone,  that  I  was  drawin'  a 
trail  through  the  woods  from  east  to  west,  and  I  did  a  good 
deal  of  my  boatin'  in  the  night,  for  the  moon  was  full,  aud 
I  always  had  a  sort  of  hankerin'  for  the  night  work  ever 
sence  I  slept  on  the  boughs ;  for  natur'  looks  one  way  in 
the  day-time,  and  another  way  in  the  night-time,  and  no 
one  knows  how  sweet  she  can  be  to  the  nose,  and  how 
pleasant  to  the  ears,  and  how  han'some  to  the  eyes,  onless 
he  has  seen  her  face,  and  heerd  her  voices,  and  smelt  her 
sweet  smells,  in  the  night  season.  I've  always  noted 
that  those  who  knowed  natur'  only  by  day-light,  knowed 
only  half  her  ways,  and  less  than  half,  too,  for  that  matter. 
For  in  the  evenin'  she  gits  familiar  and  confidential-like 
with  one,  and  talks  to  him  of  herself  and  her  ways  as 
she  never  does  in  the  day-time.  For  natur'  has  a  great 
mauy  secrets,  and  she's  timid  as  a  young  faau,  and  ye've 
got  to  creep  into  thickets,  and  lay  yer  boat  up  under  the 
banks  of  streams,  and  lie  down  in  the  mash  grass  when  all 
is  dark  and  still,  if  ye  want  to  hear  her  whisper  to  ye  of 
her  innermost  feelin's.  The  Lord  only  knows  how  many 
times  I  have  ambushed  her  in  her  hidin'  places  as  a  Huron 
Would  a  camp,  and  caught  her  at  her  pranks.    Ah,  Henry, 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        61 

ye  have  no  idee  how  many  things  I  have  larnt  of  her  in 
the  night-time,  or  how  frisky  and  solemn,  both,  natur'  can 
be  betwixt  the  settin'  and  risin'  of  the  sun. 

Well,  as  I  was  sayin',  I'd  been  over  to  the  east  bound- 
aries of  the  woods,  nigh  on  to  the  Horricon  waters,  where 
I  did  a  good  deal  of  my  early  scoutin',  to  sorter  see  how 
the  brooks  and  wood-ways  looked  agin,  but  it  was  a  sorry 
time  I  had  on  it,  for  the  settlers  had  pushed  in,  and  their 
mills  was  on  every  stream,  and  their  paiuted  housen  stood 
under  the  very  trees  where  I  used  to  cook  my  venison  with 
no  sights  or  sounds  around  save  those  that  natur'  herself 
m?de.  And  ye  can  well  believe,  Henry,  that  I  was  glad  to 
git  away  from  what  I  went  to  see  and  be  back  here  where 
my  ears  couldn't  hear  the  sound  of  axes  and  the  fallin'  of 
trees  —  yis,  I  was  mighty  glad  to  git  back  where  things  was 
quiet  and  peaceful-like,  and  the  cruelties  and  devilments  of 
men  that  have  no  respect  for  things  the  Lord  has  made 
hadn't  come  to  distarb  the  habits  of  natur'. 

Well,  as  I  was  sayin',  it  was  eleven  years  back,  and  in 
this  very  month,  and  well  on  in  the  night,  that  I  came  down 
the  inlet  yender  into  this  lake.  And  the  moon  was  nigh  on 
to  her  full,  and  everything  looked  solemn  and  white  jest  as 
they  do  to  us  now,  and  the  Lord  knows  I  leetle  thought  to 
meet  mortal  man  in  these  solitudes  when  I  run  agin  what  I 
am.  to  tell  ye  of. 

I  was  p  iddlin'  down  this  side  of  the  lake,  keepin'  well 
under  the  shore,  list'nin'  and  thinkin',  and  happy  in  my 
heart  as  a  rat  in  the  water,  when  I  heerd  the  strangest 
sounds  I  ever  heerd  come  out  of  bird  or  beast.    It  was  a 


62  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

kind  of  murmurin'  noise  that  run  out  into  the  stillness  an' 
sorter  capered  round  a  minit,  an'  then  run  back  where  it 
started  from.  Ye  better  believe,  Henry,  I  sot  and  listened 
as  a  man  listens  scoutin'  alone  in  the  night  time  in  these 
woods,  when  he  gits  a  sound  in  his  ears  that  he  can't  make 
out.  Yis,  I  sot  and  listened  ontil  I  was  nothin'  but  ears, 
and  the  very  stillness  beat  on  the  narves  of  my  head  as  I 
have  heerd  the  roll  of  the  waves  on  the  lakes  beat  on  the 
beach.  But  for  the  life  of  me  I  couldn't  make  it  sound 
nateral,  nor  tell  what  animil  it  belonged  to,  and  it  took  the 
conceit  out  o'  me  to  larn  that  there  was  a  cretur  in  the 
woods  whose  mouth  didn't  tell  me  its  name  and  habits. 

Arter  a  while  I  got  the  true  direction  of  it,  for  a  sound 
goes  as  straight  from  its  startin'  to  the  ear  as  a  bee  from  a 
wind-fall  or  burnt  clearin'  goes  to  its  hole  in  the  beech, 
and  I  said  to  myself  as  I  lifted  my  rifle  to  my  knee,  that  I 
would  ambush  the  cretur  and  find  out  what  mouth  had  a 
language  in  it  that  old  John  Norton  couldn't  tell  the  mean- 
in'  of.  So  I  laid  my  boat  up  in  the  direction  of  the  sound 
as  if  my  life  depended  on  the  proper  use  of  the  paddle.  I 
hadn't  gone  more  than  ten  rods  afore  the  noise  stopped, 
but  I'd  fixed  it  in  the  line  of  a  dead  Norway  and  I  knowed 
I  could  put  my  boat  inside  of  fifty  feet  of  where  the  cretur 
lay.  I  never  acted  more  sarcumspectly  nor  fetched  an  am- 
bushment  more  easy  and  sartin',  and  in  a  shorter  time  than 
it  takes  me  to  tell  ye  I  had  my  boat  under  the  pint  of  that 
bank  there  within  ten  feet  of  the  shrubs,  with  my  finger 
on  the  trigger  of  a  rifle  that  goes  easy  in  an  onsartin  am- 
bushment.    There  I  sot  a  full  minit  knowin'  I  was  inside 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        63 

of  fifty  feet  of  the  cretur,  with  my  eyes  and  ears  as  open 
as  they  should  be  in  such  sarcumstances.  Then  I  heerd  a 
a  kind  of  crawlin'  sound  as  if  the  brute  or  reptile  was  trail- 
in'  himself  along  the  sand ;  and  I  knowed  if  the  wiggle  of 
a  bush  would  give  me  the  line  I  could  open  a  hole  through 
him.  It  might  have  been  ten  feet  that  the  cretur  crawled 
and  than  he  stopped,  but  I  had  fixed  him  well  in  mind  and 
felt  sartin  I  could  drive  the  lead  where  it  ought  to  go.  I 
had  got  the  breech  of  my  rifle  half  way  to  my  face,  and  my 
cheek  was  settling  to  the  stock,  when  the  cretur  opened 
his  mouth,  and  by  the  Lord  of  Marcy,  Henry,  I  diskivered  I 
had  ambushed  no  animil  at  all,  but  a  mortal  man  1 " 

Long  before  the  Old  Trapper  had  got  to  this  point  of  his 
narrative  I  had  become  profoundly  interested  in  his  recital. 
For  he  told  the  story  as  men  born  to  the  woods  tell  their 
tales  of  personal  adventure  —  with  a  natural  eloquence  of 
tone,  feature  and  gesture  which  only  those  have  whose  ex- 
periences have  been  narrow  but  intense,  and  who  speak 
from  the  simple  earnestness  of  untutored  and  therefore 
unfettered  power.  His  narrative  had  been  told  from  the 
beginning  in  two  languages ;  one  verbal  and  the  other  pan- 
tomimic, and  he  had  carried  me  along  with  his  story  as  it 
advanced  as  much  by  that  which  addressed  the  eye  as  by 
that  which  entered  the  ear.  He  had  gathered  warmth  and 
energy  of  expression  as  he  had  gone  on,  until  I  found  my- 
self moving  in  sympathy  with  the  visible  action  of  his  fea- 
tures, body  and  hand3;  and  when  he  reached  the  climax  of 
his  discovery,  I  shared  to  the  full  in  the  excitement  of  his 
pantomimic  action,  and  doubt  if  the  shock  of  surprise 


64  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

which  he  had  experienced  eleven  years  before  in  his  boat 
under  the  bank,  on  the  point  which  lay  in  the  moonlight  full 
in  view,  was  much  greater  at  the  startling  discovery  he  had 
made,  than  was  mine.  So  we  sat  looking  full  at  eacl  other 
across  the  camp-fire,  our  faces  tense  with  mutual  excite- 
ment, as  if  we  were  actual  sharers  in  the  astonishing  dis- 
covery. 

"  Yis,  Henry,  a  man  was  there,  a  man  on  that  pint  where 
I  expected  to  find  only  an  animil ;  and  his  words,  as  they 
came  out  of  his  mouth  into  the  still  air  of  the  night,  strong 
and  clear  as  a  man  in  the  rapids  calling  for  help,  were  words 
of  prayer.  I've  been,  Henry,  in  many  ambushments  in  the 
seventy  years  I've  lived,  and  I've  been  in  peril  from  inimies 
behind  and  afore ;  and  more  than  once  have  I  met  the  rage 
of  man  and  beast  and  been  brought  lace  to  face  with  death 
onexpectedly ;  but  never  since  my  eyes  knowed  the  sights, 
so  my  life  depended  on  the  proper  use  of  my  faculties,  was 
I  ever  so  taken  onawares  or  onbalanced  as  I  was  under  the 
bushes,  there  on  yender  pint  eleven  years  gone,  when  I 
heerd  the  voice  of  that  man  I  had  mistook  for  an  animil, 
break  out  in  prayer.  It  was  of  the  Lord's  own  marcy, 
Henry,  that  I  was  not  a  murderer  of  my  kind,  for  my  finger 
was  on  the  trigger  as  I  told  ye,  and  my  eye  was  getting  onto 
as  trusty  a  barrel  as  man  ever  hefted,  when  He  opened  the 
cretur's  mouth  with  the  sound  of  His  own  name.  For  a 
minute  the  blood  stopped  in  my  heart,  and  my  hair  moved 
in  my  scalp ;  and  then  I  shook  like  a  man  with  the  chills, 
ontil  I  drew  from  the  guard  of  my  rifle  a  finger  that  had 
never  quivered  before,  for  fear  I  should  explode  the  piece 
and  distarb  the  man  in  his  worship. 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        65 

I  sot  and  heerd  the  man  from  beginnin'  to  end,  and  I 
larned,  under  the  bushes  that  night,  how  hard-put  a  mortal 
may  be  by  reason  of  his  sin.  For  the  man  prayed  for  help  as 
one  calls  to  a  comrade  when  his  boat  has  gone  down  under 
him  in  the  rapids,  and  he  knows  he  must  have  help  or  die. 
['ve  been  a  prayin'  man,  Henry,  as  one  should  be  who  lives 
here  in  the  woods  where  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  every- 
where and  in  all  things  j  but  I  never  prayed  as  that  man 
prayed,  and  it  larned  me  that  what  is  prayin'  to  one  man 
isn't  prayin'  to  another,  for  the  natur'  of  our  wants  settle 
the  natur'  of  our  prayin',  and  the  habits  of  our  life  makes 
the  trail  to  His  marcy  level  or  steep.  And  this  man  was 
climbin'  a  steep  trail,  and  his  soul  was  strugglin'  on  a  hard 
carry,  I  tell  ye ;  and  the  words  of  his  cry  came  out  of  his 
mouth  like  the  words  of  one  who  is  lost  onless  somebody 
.saves  him.  It's  dreadful  for  a  man  to  live  in  sech  a  way 
(hat  he  has  to  pray  in  that  fashion  j  for  we  ought  to  live, 
Henry,  so  that  it  is  cheerful-like  to  meet  the  Lord,  and 
"Dleasant  to  hold  convarse  with  him. 

So  I  sot  in  my  boat  ontil  he  was  done,  and  then  I  hugged 
myself  close  in  under  the  bushes,  for  I  heerd  him  coming 
down  toward  the  shore,  for  I  knowed  he  must  pass  nigh 
where  I  lay  in  the  ambushment.  And  he  did,  —  aye,  so 
nigh  that  I  could  have  teched  him  with  my  paddle,  and  he 
had  something  heavy  in  his  arms,  for  he  staggered  as  he 
went  by,  as  if  put  to  it  for  strength.  In  a  minit  I  heerd  him 
shove  a  boat  out  of  the  bushes  onto  the  water,  and  gettin' 
in,  he  pushed  off  onto  the  lake.  He  led  straight  off  into 
the  center  of  it,  and  I  trailed  him  in  his  wake,  for  the  moon 


66  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

had  got  back  of  the  mountain  here  to  the  right,  and  I  was 
determined  to  see  what  his  queer  goin's-on  meant.  Well, 
when  he  had  come  nigh  to  the  middle  of  the  lake  he  laid 
his  paddle  down,  and  lifted  somethin'  into  the  air,  and 
turned  it  up  endwise  and  poured  what  was  in  it  out.  I 
larnt,  afterwards,  what  it  was  he  lifted  into  the  air,  and 
what  it  was  he  poured  out  of  it,  for  he  told  me  with  his 
own  lips,  and  under  sech  sarcumstances,  and  at  a  time, 
when  mortals  are  apt  to  tell  the  truth ;  for  he  told  me  on 
his  death-day,  when  he  lay  dyin',  and  I  never  knowed  a 
man,  white  or  redskin,  that  didn't  talk  straight  as  an  honest 
trapper  countin'  his  pelts,  when  he  had  come  to  the  last 
blaze  on  the  trail,  and  -his  feet  stood  on  the  edge  of  the 
Great  Clearin'. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

FINDING  THE  MISER. 

"Sagacious  hound."—  Virgil. 

"TTTELL,  I  didn't  make  myself  known  to  him  that  night, 
for  I  felt  onsartin'  as  to  the  naturi  of  the  man ;  and 
beside,  I  conceited  I  had  no  right  to  step  in  suddenly  upon 
a  man  in  the  midst  of  his  troubles,  of  whatever  sort  they 
might  be ;  —  for  it  always  seemed  to  me  that  a  mortal  had 
a  right  to  have  ownership  of  his  own  grief,  and  to  shet  the 
door  of  it  agin'  the  whole  world,  as  much  as  a  hunter  in  his 
own  camp  has  a  right  to  shet  the  door  of  his  lodge.  So  I 
shied  off  farther  into  the  lake  and  made  camp  for  the  night, 
or  what  there  was  left  of  it,  on  the  island  yender. 

Well,  in  the  mornin'  I  bestirred  myself,  and  started  my 
fire  ostentatious-like  on  the  side  of  the  island  next  the 
p'int,  and  it  made  as  much  smoke  as  if  it  had  been  built  by 
a  boy  from  the  settlements,  or  a  college  lad  in  his  first  trip 
to  the  woods,  whose  tongues  run  to  words,  and  whose  fires 
are  all  smoke,  —  for  I  wanted  to  call  his  eyes  over  my  way 
and  let  him  know  that  there  was  a  human  on  the  lake,  and 
one  that  didn't  seek  concealment  like  a  thievin'  half-breed 
on  an  honest  trapper's  line ;  for  a  fire  here  in  the  woods  is 
'ike  the  little  keerds  that  the  gals  in  the  settlements,  I  have 
been  told,  send  round  to  their  friends  to  ax  them  to  drink 


68  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

tea  with  them,  or  jine  in  a  jig :  a  gineral  invite  to  come  in 
and  feel  at  home.  So  I  piled  on  the  timber  in  a  wasteful 
way,  and  dropped  on  a  bit  of  punk  now  and  then,  until, 
'twixt  the  blaze  and  the  smoke,  I  warrant  a  hunter's  eye, 
even  in  peace  time,  not  to  say  a  scout's  when  the  redskins 
are  loose,  could  have  seen  it  ten  miles  away.  But  the  man 
on  the  p'int  never  took  the  hint,  and  well  enough  he 
mightn't,  for  I  afterwards  larned  that  he  never  saw  either 
blaze  or  smoke,  for  he  was  lyin'  in  his  lodge  back  there  in 
the  swale,  with  his  thoughts  far  away,  and  his  eyes  on  other 
lights  than  such  as  the  hands  of  man  build. 

Well,  I  cooked  my  breakfast  for  the  hound  there  and  me, 
and  while  we  were  eatin'  it  we  both  kept  thinkin'  of  the 
man  on  the  p'int ;  for  a  dog  of  breedin'  knows  what  his 
master's  thinkin'  about,  and  I  could  tell  by  the  movements 
of  the  hound's  nose  that  the  Lord  was  blowin'  knowledge 
to  him  from  the  other  side  of  the  lake,  and  that  his 
thoughts  were  not  on  the  meat  he  was  eatin',  but  over 
there  where  him  and  me  had  fetched  our  ambushment  the 
night  before.  So  arter  we  had  finished  eatin',  and  cleaned 
things  up,  we  stood  around  awhile  and  kept  our  eyes  on  the 
p'int  for  some  friendly  sign,  and  both  me  and  the  hound  felt 
sort  of  disappinted-like,  and  the  least  bit  oneasy  in  mind 
as  to  what  it  all  meant ;  for  it  seemed  mighty  queer  that 
the  man  should  make  no  sign,  not  to  say  show  himself, 
when  he  must  have  knowed  that  we  wanted  to  be  neigh- 
borly. So  arter  a  while  I  put  off  toward  the  p'int,  deter- 
mined to  see  for  ourselves  what  sort  of  a  cretur'  he  was, 
Whose  behavior  had  been  so  mighty  onusual  the  night  afore; 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        69 

And  I  paddled  over  straight  for  the  bushes  where  I  knowed 
his  boat  was,  and,  sure  enough,  there  it  was  plain  in  sight, 
where  I  felt  it  must  be. 

Then  I  went  ashore  and  began  to  poke  around,  and  the 
trail  was  plain  enough  for  a  man  from  the  settlements  to 
follow  with  his  eyes  half  shet;  for  it  led  from  the  boat 
straight  up  the  hill,  under  the  pines  and  down  into  the 
swale  back  of  it.  So  I  pushed  along,  keeping  an  eye  open 
for  the  shanty  that  I  knowed  must  be  nigh,  and  soon  sot 
my  eyes  on  it,  sure  enough ;  but  it  was  no  shanty  at  all, 
only  a  mis'rable  old  tent.  I  will  confess,  Henry,  that  it 
rather  sot  me  agin  the  man,  whoever  he  was,  when  I  saw 
him  livin'  shet  up  in  an  ouventilated  canvass  bag,  like  a  rat 
in  his  hole  in  the  spring  freshets,  when  he  might  have 
housed  himself  in  a  bark  lodge,  dry  and  airy,  with  one  side 
open  as  a  house  always  should  be,  arter  my  way  of  thinking 
for  it's  a  great  blessin'  to  be  able  to  see  the  bigness  of  the 
world  in  which  you  are  livin',  and  breathe  the  air  as  the 
Lord  blows  it  to  ye  fresh  and  strong  from  the  slope  of 
mountains  and  the  cool  water  level.  And  I  conceit  that 
whoever  lives  in  a  canvas  shed,  that's  damp  and  swashy  as 
last  year's  mash-grass,  must  be  a  very  senseless  or  wicked 
bein',  who  don't  know  how  handsome  the  world  is,  or  else 
wants  to  hide  himself  from  the  eyes  of  man,  and  of  the 
Lord,  too,  for  that  matter ;  for  an  honest  man  in  the  woods 
builds  his  lodge  so  he  can  see  and  be  seen  by  day  and  by 
night,  because  he  loves  the  sun  and  sky  by  day  and  the 
.stars  by  night,  and  has  no  reason  to  hide  himself  or  his 
traps  from  the  Lord,  or  from  his  own  kind,  —  which  is  open 


70  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  noble-like,  as  I  understand  it.  So  when  I  seed  the  mis'- 
rable  and  nasty  old  tent,  where  the  bark  was  plenty  and 
willin'  to  be  peeled,  I  felt  suspicious  of  the  man,  and 
conceited  that  his  morals  wasn't  what  they  should  be. 
But  in  spite  of  my  suspicionin'  I  detarmined  to  go  on  and 
nose  the  man  out ;  and  I  said  to  myself:  '  What  right  have 
ye,  Old  John  Norton,  to  sit  in  jedgment  on  a  fellow  mortal, 
and  before  even  ye  have  seed  him.  It  may  be  the  man  is 
ignorant  of  the  ways  of  the  woods,  and  knows  no  better 
nor  a  babe  how  to  care  for  himself;  or  perhaps  he  has  been 
onfortunit  and  needs  help  more  than  jedgment.' 

So  I  pushed  ahead  and  laid  my  hand  on  the  rag  of  a  door 
and  drew  it  aside  in  a  frank  sort  of  a  way,  and,  by  the 
Lord,  Henry,  the  man  lay  dead  before  me !  Leastwise  I 
thought  he  was  dead,  for  his  eyes  was  half  shet  and  half 
open,  as  a  dead  man's  should  be  who  has  died  onattended, 
and  his  face  was  as  white  as  the  moss  on  the  rock  when 
the  moonshine  is  on  it.  Well,  Henry,  it  was  a  solemn  sight 
I  can  tell  ye,  and  one  that  made  me  ashamed  of  my  sus- 
picionin'  of  the  man,  and  I  trust  the  Lord  forgave  me  the 
wicked  thought  I  had  had  of  a  fellow  mortal  because  he 
hadn't  showed  himself  on  the  p'int,  or  called  on  me  at  my 
camp,  when  all  the  time  the  hand  of  death  was  heavy  on 
him,  and  his  legs  were  as  strengthless  as  the  reeds  on  the 
mash  when  the  frost  has  smitten  them. 

Well,  I  stood  at  the  door  of  the  tent  and  I  onkivered  my 
head,  as  a  mortal  should  in  sech  solemn  sarcumstances,  lor 
I  verily  thought  the  man  was  dead ;  but  the  hound,  there, 
knowed  better,  for  the  Lord  has  given  a  sense  in  sech  things 


T  ONKTVERED  MY  HEAD."    FA GE  70. 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        71 

to  a  dog  that  he  withholds  from  the  master,  for  the  hound 
arter  standin'  respectful-like  behind  me  a  minit,  as  if  he 
would  nbt  he  too  forrud,  or  shame  me  by  his  better  knowl- 
edge, pushed  in  to  the  side  of  the  body  and  put  his  nose  to 
the  cheek  and  then  just  turned  his  eyes  up  to  me  and 
wagged  his  tail.  Ah  me,  it's  wonderful  what  larnin'  the 
Lord  has  given  to  the  creturs  he  has  made,  and  how  often 
they  know  more  than  their  masters ;  and  here  was  a  dog 
who  knowed  the  livin'  and  the  dead  better  than  I  did, 
though  the  body  was  the  body  of  a  mortal,  and  not  of  his 
kind. 

Well,  when  I  seed  the  hound  move  his  tail,  happy-like,  I 
knowed  the  man  was  not  dead,  however  nigh  he  might  be 
on  to  it ;  and  so  I  stepped  in  quick  as  powder  ever  burnt 
and  histed  the  man  up,  and  took  him  in  my  arms,  and  car- 
ried him  out  of  the  miserable  tent  into  the  fresh,  cool  air, 
and  laid  him  down  in  the  warm  sunshine  on  the  p'int,  and 
fell  to  chafin'  his  legs  and  his  wrists,  and  pressin'  on  his 
chest,  and  sprinklin'  water  in  his  face  j  and  I  blowed  in  his 
nostrils,  and  did  as  a  man  should  in  such  sarcumstances  to 
one  of  his  kind. 

But  he  was  mighty  weak,  and  aU  the  strength  he  had  was 
in  his  eyes,  for  he  couldn't  move  hand  or  foot,  more  than  a 
buck  with  a  bullet  through  his  spine  the  mornin'  arter  he 
is  shot.  And  it  was  a  very  solemn  sight  to  see  a  full-grown 
man  lyin'  on  the  sand  with  all  natur'  lively  around  him,  and 
he  onable  to  move  a  leg,  or  lift  a  finger ;  and  it  showed 
that  the  body  of  a  mortal  has  no  more  life  in  it  than  a  las*- 
year's  beaver's  hide,  when  his  sperit  has  left  it;  and  it  was 


72  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

awful-like  to  see  a  fellow  bein'  dead  in  every  member  of  his 
mortal  frame  but  his  eyes,  and  all  there  was  of  himself 
lookin'  steadily  out  of  them  at  ye.  But  I  felt  he  would 
fetch  around  arter  awhile,  for  the  sun  was  warm  and  the 
wind  fresh,  and  I  bolstered  him  up  so  it  would  blow  straight 
into  his  mouth  and  nostrils,  and  I  said  to  myself,  if  natur' 
can't  bring  him  to,  nothin'  can.  And  so  I  felt  cheerful-like, 
and  pretty  sartin  that  between  the  sun  and  warm  sand  and 
wind  we  would  get  his  members  warmed  up  and  agoin'  agin 
afore  long ;  and  the  hound  thought  so  too,  for  when  the 
man  fust  opened  his  eyes  the  animil  knowed  it  was  a  good 
sign  as  well  as  I  did,  for  the  cretur  no  sooner  saw  them 
open  naterally,  than  he  scooted  a  circle  round  the  body  in 
the  sand  lively  as  a  young  pup  at  play,  and  then  he  stopped 
in  his  foolishness  and  let  a  roar  out  of  his  mouth  that  might 
have  been  heerd  over  to  Salmon  Lake ;  and  then  he  came 
back  and  sot  down  on  his  hanches  close  by  the  man,  and 
watched  him  as  arnestly  as  I  did.  Every  few  minits  he 
would  look  up  at  me  with  a  happy  sort  of  look  in  his  eyes 
and  fetch  a  wag  or  two,  with  his  tail ;  and  it  was  mighty 
cheerful  and  encouragin  to  see  the  animil  act  so,  and  made 
me  feel  sort  of  chirpy  myself,  as  I  sot  in  the  sand  watchin' 
the  man,  for  I  knowed  the  hound  was  a  truthful  dog,  and 
was  wise  in  his  gifts,  and  wouldn't  lie  agin  the  vardict  of 
them,  and  I  conceited  that  the  man  would  pick  up  and  be 
able  to  talk,  if  the  dog  said  so. 

"  Well,  arter  a  while  the  man  begun  to  pick  up  for  sar- 
tin, for  the  blood  come  back  into  his  skin,  and  his  fingers 
begun  to  open  and  shet  easy-like,  and  he  put  his  tongue 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        73 

out  and  wet  his  lips  naterally  as  a  man  does  artei  sleep  in 
a  hot  lodge.  I  sarched  my  pack  and  found  some  tea  a  city 
woman  gave  me  the  summer  afore  for  a  sarvice  I  done  her 
on  the  Bacquette,  which  was  no  more  than  any  man  would 
do  for  a  woman,  but  which  she  said  she  should  never  forgit 
till  her  dyin'  day,  —  and  I  guess  she  never  will,  for  T  found 
somethin'  she  had  lost  that  lay  near  her  heart,  and  I  never 
kuowed  a  white  woman,  or  squaw,  neither,  for  that  matter, 
forgit  a  man  who  done  them  a  sarvice  in  that  direction ;  — 
well,  as  I  was  sayin',  I  sarched  for  the  tea  the  city  woman 
had  given  me,  and  steeped  a  cup  of  it  for  the  man  on  the 
sand,  and  I  made  it  strong  as  the  leaf  would  make  it,  for  I 
knowed  it  would  help  natur'  to  rally,  aud  make  him  strong 
enough  to  take  nourishment,  and  set  his  tongue  goin',  if 
such  a  thing  could  be  by  the  Lord's  appintment. 

So  I  gave  him  the  drink,  and  it  took  hold  on  him  at  once. 
It  was  really  amazin'  Henry,  how  the  yarb  put  life  into  him 
as  if  it  had  the  Lord's  own  power  to  call  the  soul  back  into 
the  mortal  frame  and  set  the  members  of  it  workin'.  Tis, 
it  was  a  marvel  to  see  the  power  that  natur'  had  put  into  a 
few  withered  leaves  —  for  the  more  he  drank  the  better  he 
felt,  and  by  the  time  he  had  come  to  the  bottom  of  the  cup 
I  could  see  that  the  man  was  nigh  himself  agin,  and  likely 
enough  to  begin  to  talk ;  and  sure  enough,  in  a  minit  he 
made  a  effort  to  speak,  and  arter  one  or  two  trials  he  got 
his  tongue  used  to  the  motions,  and  said  :  — 

"  Old  man,  who  be  ye,  that  has  called  me  back  from  the 
gates  of  death  and  summoned  me  from  the  borders  of  the 
grave  ? " 


74  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

li  My  name,"  I  said,  "  is  John  Norton,  and  I  be  nobody 
but  a  hunter  and  trapper  who  has  done  nothin'  but  live  in 
a  nateral  way  and  sarve  his  kind  when  the  Lord  gave  him 
a  chance ;  and  as  for  bringin'  ye  back  from  the  border  of 
the  grave,  I  think  ye  was  pritty  nigh  onto  it,  and  me  and 
the  hound  yender,  and  the  tea  I  steeped  for  ye,  did  may- 
haps  give  ye  a  lift  in  the  right  direction  —  though  It  musn't 
be  overlooked,  if  ye  are  cur'us  in  the  matter ;  that  the  sun 
and  wind  done  their  part  to  bring  ye  to ;  and  I  dare  say  the 
Lord  in  his  marcy  has  done  more  than  us  all,  for  ye  sartinly 
would  have  died  if  he  hadn't  given  the  hound  the  sense  to 
know  the  dead  from  the  livin'  and  helped  us  iu  our  endiv- 
ers.  And  now,  friend,  what  may  yer  name  be,  and  what 
game  did  ye  have  in  mind  when  ye  pushed  yer  trail  from 
the  settlements  into  this  lonely  lake ;  for  I  see  from  the 
signs,  that  ye  know  nothin'  of  the  woods,  and  I  marvel  why 
a  man  of  yer  ignorance  should  leave  the  hants  of  yer 
kind,  and  I  dare  say  kindred,  and  risk  yerself  in  these  out- 
of-the-way  places,  which  be  pleasant  to  those  who  know 
them,  but  risky  to  them  that  doesn't ;  so  I  ax  ye  yer  name, 
and  why  I  find  ye  here  alone  and  unprotected  as  if  ye 
hadn't  a  friend  on  the  arth." 

"  John  Norton,"  said  the  man,  "  my  name  is  Eoberts, 
John  Roberts ;  and  I  have  not  a  friend  on  the  earth,  nor  do 
I  deserve  one,  for  I  have  forfeited  the  love  of  all  that  ever 
loved  me,  by  my  evil  acts,  and  the  Lord  has  visited  upon 
me  the  punishment  I  deserved  by  separating  me  from  them. 
Yea,  out  of  my  sins  has  come  judgment,  and  my  evil 
thought  has  been  the  pit  into  which  I  have  stumbled.    But 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        75 

the  marcy  I  bad  forfeited  has  been  shown  me,  in  my  guilt, 
and  the  peace  of  the  Spirit  that  made  and  lives  in  the  uni- 
verse has  been  breathed  into  me  from  these  mountains  and 
tbe  sky  and  the  majesties  of  nature  in  the  presence  of 
which,  glad  that  my  mortal  life  is  eDded,  I  lie  dying ; '  and 
the  man  turned  his  eyes  on  the  objects  he  named,  with  the 
look  of  a  hound  in  them  when  he  meets  the  pleased  face  of 
his  master. 

"  John  Boberts,"  I  said,  "  I  do  not  understand  ye,  for  the 
beauty  of  natur'  is  sech  as  to  make  men  wish  to  live  and 
not  to  die,  and  though  I  trust  I  may  be  willin'  to  go  when 
He  calls,  still  I  can't  conceit  of  any  place  pleasanter  or  more 
cheerful-like  for  a  human  bein'  to  live  in  than  these  woods, 
and  I  hope  He  will  let  me  stay  here,  scoutin'  round,  as  long 
as  His  plans  techin'  me  allow  of ;  and,  as  for  that  matter,  if 
He  should  forgit  us  altogether  I  don't  conceit  that  me  and 
the  hound  would  be  very  onhappy  or  feel  cheated-like,  but 
would  hold  it  as  a  kind  of  a  marcy,  and  keep  on  enjoyin' 
ourselves  and  sarvin'  Him  in  the  way  of  natur's  app'int- 
ment ;  and  as  for  friends,  I  haven't  an  inimy  in  the  world 
but  a  thievin'  Huron  I  caught  on  the  line  of  my  traps,  last 
winter,  and  shortened  his  left  ear  half  an  inch  with  a  bul- 
let, and  a  mis'rable  half-breed  or  two  I've  larnt  the  com- 
mandments in  a  similar  manner.  But  outside  of  these,  me 
and  the  hound  there  are  in  peace  with  all  the  'arth,  and  feel 
cheerful  and  pleasant-like  toward  every  livin'  bein',  except 
the  panthers,  —  yis,  always  exceptin'  the  panthers,  that  we 
keep  a  kind  of  runnin'  account  with,  as  the  pedlars  say  in 
the  settlements,  and  square  up  whenever  we  git  a  chance." 


76  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

a  Ye  see,  Henry ,"  continued  the  old  man  u  I  wanted  to 
chirk  him  up  as  much  as  I  could,  because  he  was  mighty 
weak  still,  and  I  thought  that  low  sperits  would  sot  him 
back  agin,  so  even  the  hound  and  me  couldn't  bring  him 
to ;  and  so  I  talked  the  least  bit  frisky-like,  and  took  on  as 
if  I  felt  ondistarbed.  But  he  knowed  better  all  the  ame  ; 
for  he  looked  at  me  with  his  eyes  fixed  solemnly  on  my 
face  and  said :  — 

'Old  man,  I  know  you  can't  understand,  because  you 
have  lived  an  innocent  life,  and  according  to  the  light  you 
had  you  have  walked  in  the  path  of  righteousness,  and  the 
peace  of  the  upright  is  in  your  heart,  and  the  light  of  it  is 
over  all  the  world,  and  makes  it  desirable  to  your  eyes. 
And  I  can  well  understand  that  you  need  no  other  life  than 
the  one  you  lead,  or  other  heaven  than  the  lovely  scenes 
which  your  gifts  and  your  manner  of  life  have  taught  you 
so  well  to  enjoy ;  and  I  can  understand,  too,  how  you  can- 
not grasp  the  meaning  of  a  guilt  as  those  who  sin  against 
light  feel  it :  the  guilt  of  a  man  who  has  resisted  God  and 
hardened  his  nature  by  a  cursed  passion,  and  hated  what 
he  should  have  loved,  and  loved  with  lusting  what  he  should 
have  hated  —  for  you  have  been  as  a  child,  and  the  King- 
dom of  Heaven  has  come  to  you  with  the  years,  because 
your  aging  took  not  the  simple  innocency  of  childhood  from 
you.  But  I  have  lived  so  that  memory  is  only  fuel  to  re- 
morse, and  the  earth  a  constant  reminder  of  my  guilt ;  and 
hence  I  would  seek  my  heaven  in  the  forgetfulness  of  death, 
and  anticipate  another  land  beyond  the  grave,  in  hopes  of 
finding  escape  from  what  torments  me  here,  and  having 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        77 

ministered  unto  my  life  the  boon  of  a  new  start.  And  you 
must  know  that  there  are  those  in  the  world  beyond  the 
grave  whom  I  have  wronged,  and  the  load  of  their  wrong- 
ing lies  heavy  on  my  soul.  I  would  had  them,  and  on  my 
knees  ask  their  pardon ;  for,  old  man,  even  God  himself 
cannot  undo  the  structure  of  our  minds,  nor  perform  duty 
for  us,  and  I  feel  that  the  forgiveness  of  Heaven  cannot 
make  me  happy  until  I  have  the  forgiveness  of  my  wife 
whom  I  deserted,  and  of  my  child  whom  I,  with  curses,  re- 
fused to  see  in  her  dying  hour. 

And  you  should  know,  old  man,  that  I  am  dying,  and  I 
long  to  die ;  nor  do  I  ask  aught  save  that  I  may  have 
strength  to  tell  you  my  story,  and  give  you  a  few  direc- 
tions ;  for  it  will  ease  my  soul  to  talk  while  dying,  and  I 
know  it  will  delight  you  to  hear  of  the  goodness  of  that 
God  whom  you,  in  simple  reverence,  worship,  and  to  learn 
from  the  lips  of  a  dying  sinner  that  the  woods  you  so  love 
have  been  to  him  the  means  of  his  salvation.  So  sit  you 
down,  old  man,  and  listen  closely,  for  I  am  weak,  and  I  will 
tell  you  the  story  of  my  life ;  —  why  I  am  here,  and  what 
you  are  to  do  with  what  is  left  of  me  and  mine  when  I  am 
gone  from  here,  as  I  soon  shall  be,  forever.' 

"Well,  Henry,  I  saw  that  the  man  was  in  solemn  arnest, 
and  I  knowed  the  Lord  was  apt  to  give  a  mortal  nigh  death 
a  foreknowin'  of  the  time  and  order  of  things  techin'  his 
departur',  and  I  conceited  the  man  was  right  in  his  idees, 
and  that  it  would  be  onreasonable  to  resist  him ;  so  I  sot 
down  on  the  sand  by  his  side  and  said,  'Well,  friend,  I  allow 
there's  reason  in  your  words,  and  John  Norton  is  not  the 


78  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

one  to  arger  agin  a  dyin'  man  nor  distarb  his  thoughts  with 
foolish  talkin'.  And  it  may  be  ye  have  come  nigh  the  end 
of  the  trail,  as  ye  say,  and  if  so  I  sartinly  advise  ye  to  on- 
load yerself  of  whatever  bears  heavy  on  ye ;  for  a  man 
should  enter  the  Great  Clearm'  with  nothin'  heavier  than 
his  rifle  about  him,  and  ready  for  whatever  sarvice  the  Lord 
app'ints.  And  as  to  the  directions,  ye  may  give  me  as  many 
as  ye  have  to  tell,  and  if  it  be  within  range  of  mortal  power 
it  shall  all  be  done  as  ye  tell  me;  fori  have  sot  beside 
many  a  dyin'  man  arter  the  scrimmage  was  over,  and  heerd 
his  words,  and  not  one,  white  or  redskin,  friend  or  iuimy, 
can  rise  in  the  jedgment  and  say  John  Norton  didn't  do 
jest  as  he  was  told  to  do.  So  ye  jest  go  ahead  and  ease 
yer  mind,  John  Eoberts,  and  me  and  the  hound  will  listen, 
and  as  we  lam  yer  wishes  so  will  we  do,  even  if  the  traps 
aint  sot  on  the  line  next  winter,  or  the  trail  of  your  errand 
takes  us  into  the  onnateral  noise  and  diviltry  of  the  settle- 
ments.' 

So  I  promised  the  man,  Henry,  and  kept  my  word,  as  the 
hound,  there,  knows,  for  he  heerd  it  all  and  seed  it  all 
arterwards,  and  it  was  done  jest  as  the  man  appinted. 
And  this  is  what  he  told  me  as  he  lay  on  the  sand,  with  me 
and  the  hound  listenin'. 


CHAPTER  Yin. 

THE  MISER'S  CONFESSION. 

"  One  impulse  from  a  vernal  wood 
May  teach  you  more  of  man, 
Of  moral  evil  and  of  good, 
Than  all  the  sages  can."  —  Wordsworth. 

66  "jV/TY  father,  John  Norton,  was  a  miser,  although  the 
world  never  knew  it ;  but  he  loved  money,  and  all 
his  life  was  spent  in  getting  it.  He  lived  to  be  an  old  man, 
and  when  he  died  he  was  buried  from  the  meeting-house  — 
for  he  was  a  deacon  in  the  church  —  and  the  minister 
preached  the  sermon,  and  told  the  people  of  his  thrift  and 
economy,  of  his  industry  and  sobriety,  and  held  him  up  as  an 
example,  when  I  knew,  and  all  his  friends  knew,  that  he  was 
sober  when  others  drank,  simply  because  he  was  too  stingy 
to  drink,  and  that  his  industry  was  all  selfish,  and  that  his 
economy  was  miserly.  I  only  tell  you  this  to  let  you  know 
whence  I  got  my  love  of  money,  and  how  the  lust  of  gain 
came  in  me.  It  was  born  in  me,  John  Norton,  as  much  as 
the  power  of  scenting  was  bora  in  your  hound ;  yea,  given 
me  at  birth  from  the  miserly  nature  and  habits  of  a  lather 
who  was  a  church  member,  and  whose  character  and  mode 
of  life  were  praised  by  the  minister  when  they  buried  his 
body. 


80  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

He  left  me  all  his  property,  for  I  was  his  only  chik/;  and 
nc  one  save  me  ever  knew  how  much  it  was,  for  it  was 
largely  in  gold  coin  that  he  had  hidden  away,  and  which  he 
told  me  of,  and  where  to  find  it,  by  whispering  it  in  my  ear 
when  he  was  dying.  I  was  thirty  years  of  age  before  he 
died,  and  the  property  fell  to  me ;  and  until  I  had  the  gold 
myself,  and  had  seen  it  and  counted  it,  I  had  lived  a  happy 
life;  for  I  was  married  to  an  angel,  and  had  three  children, 
and  a  happier  family  never  lived  than  we  were  before  the 
gold  came  to  me.  But  no  sooner  had  I  gotten  it  into  my 
possession  than  I  began  to  love  it.  Yea,  the  sight  of  the 
coin  started  the  lust  for  it  in  me,  and  woke  to  full  life  the 
awful  appetite  for  it  which  was  in  him  and  which  he  had 
transmitted  to  me.  And  the  love  for  that  gold  grew  on  me 
as  I  handled  it ;  —  and  handle  it  I  did,  until  it  became  a 
passion  with  me.  I  used  to  get  up  nights  when  my  wife 
was  sleeping  and  go  down  cellar  where  I  kept  it  in  a  large 
pot,  and  count  it  over,  and  push  my  hands  into  it,  and  laugh 
to  hear  it  rattle,  and  to  see  it  shine  in  the  candle  light. 
And  the  love  of  it  grew  and  grew  and  grew,  until  I  loved 
nothing  else.  And  with  the  growth  of  the  dreadful  lust  in 
me  there  grew  a  suspicion  of  men  and  women,  because  I 
had  got  it  into  my  head  that  they  would  steal  it,  until  at 
last  I  grew  suspicious  of  my  own  wife  and  children,  even 
to  such  a  degree  that  I  drove  them  out  of  the  house  and 
forbade  them  ever  to  cross  its  threshold  again.  You  say  I 
was  mad.  Yes,  I  was  mad  —  mad  with  the  awful  madness 
of  one  in  whose  heart  is  a  terrible  and  wicked  love ;  a  love 
that  entices  him  and  seduces  him  from  good  uuto  evil,  and 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        81 

finally  becomes  stronger  than  conscience  —  stronger  than 
affection  for  wife  and  children  —  yea,  stronger  than  his  fear 
of  God.  Yes,  I  was  mad  in  that  way,  and  the  madness 
grew  in  its  fury  until  it  became  a  continuous  frenzy,  and 
my  life  one  hell  of  raging  fear,  suspicion  and  hatred  of  my 
kind.  I  need  not  tell  you  all,  for  you  would  not  under- 
stand it ;  you  could  not  understand  it,  for  you  have  never 
handled  money  nor  known  the  love  of  it,  and  are  as  a  child 
in  your  knowledge  of  such  an  experience.  At  last  I  came 
to  these  woods ;  came  driven  by  the  frenzy  of  fear  lest 
men  should  steal  my  money ;  came,  not  from  the  love  of 
nature,  or  the  longing  for  a  peaceful,  quiet,  innocent  life ; 
but  in  order  to  be  where  my  money  would  be  safe,  for  my 
money  was  my  God,  my  life,  my  heaven,  and  I  feared  some 
one  would  steal  it,  and  so  I  brought  it  here  because  no  man 
was  here.  How  did  I  bring  it  ?  I  brought  it  in  a  keg ;  a 
keg  stout  and  large,  and  lined  with  my  own  hands ;  and 
that  keg  was  my  altar,  my  shrine,  my  God.  John  Norton, 
remember  it's  a  dying  man  that  is  talking  to  you,  when  I 
tell  you  that  here,  on  this  very  beach  where  I  now  lie,  and 
you  sit,  I  have  sat  in  the  bright  sunlight  and  in  the  solemn 
moonlight,  too,  and  counted  my  money  by  the  hour,  and 
laughed  and  danced  around  it  as  a  devil  might  j  yea,  I,  a 
mortal  man,  have  danced  around  a  pile  of  money  like  a 
heathen  round  his  idol,  with  the  great  blue  sky  overhead, 
and  beyond  the  sky,  the  greater  God  looking  solemnly  down 
with  his  all-seeing  eyes  upon  me  and  my  gold.' 

And  here  the  man  paused,  Henry,  a  minit,  and  he  panted 
like  a  young  faan  in  her  fust  race  with  the  hounds,  for  he 


82  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

was  overtaskin'  his  strength,  and  I  feered  he  would  die  for 
sartin  if  he  didn't  fetch  up  a  bit  and  git  rested ;  so  I  thought 
I  had  better  give  him  a  lift  in  the  right  direction  by  talkin' 
a  leetle  myself,  and  I  drawed  at  a  ventur',  like  a  man  who 
sends  the  lead  by  his  notions  of  the  sound,  when  it's  too 
dusky  to  get  his  eye  into  the  sights,  and  said  :  — 

"  If  I  was  in  your  place,  Mr.  Eoberts,  I  would  set  down 
and  rest  a  bit,  for  ye  are  travelin'  with  a  big  load  over  a 
rough  carry,  if  I  am  any  jedge,  and  ye  are  gittin'  sort  of 
shaky-like  in  yer  legs,  and  ye  will  come  down  in  a  heap 
pritty  soon  if  ye  don't  steady  up  a  bit  and  take  it  a  leetle 
easier ;  for  me  and  the  hound  mean  to  fetch  ye  round  yit 
that  is,  if  the  tea  don't  gin  out,  and  the  Lord's  app'intments 
be  not  agin  it.  So  ye  jest  hold  up  a  minit  or  two,  and  rest 
while  we  stir  in  a  few  more  leaves  of  the  yarb,  and  steep  it 
for  ye  easy-like,  for  tea  can't  be  hurried  no  more  than  a 
slow  hound  in  the  beginnin'  of  a  race,  before  he's  got  the 
scent  warm  in  his  nose,  and  his  faculties  workin'.  No,  the 
yarb  is  spunky  and  knows  its  own  importance,  and  won't 
stand  rough  treatment ;  and  if  ye  bile  it  a  bit,  its  vartu'  is 
gone,  for  a  wallopin'  pot  spiles  the  tea ;  so  ye  give  me  and 
the  hound  time  to  do  the  thing  up  accordin'  to  the  rules 
and  practices  of  correct  obsarvation,  and  we  will  give  ye  a 
lift  that'll  make  ye  grateful  to  us  both. 

I  don't  catch  the  pith  of  yer  last  sayin'  about  the  eyes  of  the 
Lord  bein'  terrible  as  he  was  lookin'  at  ye  j  and  I  can't  conceit 
of  it,  nohow.  Now,  the  eyes  of  a  panther  are  terrible,  sure 
enough,  and  I  have  lined  the  sights  by  them  when  they 
barnt  a  hole  in  the  darkness ;  and  I  have  had  many  a  clinch 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        83 

with  a  Huron  in  a  scrimmage,  when  I  was  younger,  when 
the  blood  of  his  savagery  was  up,  and  his  eyes  was  as  red 
as  an  adder's  j  but  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  as  I  have  seed 
them  in  the  works  of  his  hand,  have  always  been  strong, 
for  sartin,  but  gentle  and  mild  as  a  mother  doe  when  her 
faan  is  friskin'  around  her ;  and  I  can't  conceit  of  the  face 
of  the  Lord  as  bein'  terrible,  nor  understand  how  a  mortal 
could  be  afeerd  to  have  them  on  him." 

And  all  the  while,  Henry,  I  kept  kindlin'  the  fire  for  the 
tea.    But  the  man  broke  in  on  me,  and  said  :  — 

"  Old  man,  leave  off  preparing  that  tea  and  hear  me ;  for 
naught  that  you  can  do  will  prevent  my  dying,  for  it  is 
written  that  I  die  this  day,  and  I  feel  within  my  soul  that 
my  hour  is  drawing  nigh.  Leave  off  your  preparations, 
therefore,  for  your  efforts  cannot  save  me  from  death,  nor 
would  I  have  it  otherwise  if  I  could.  I  want  you  to  listen 
and  hear  my  words,  nor  move  again  until  I  am  done." 

So  I  sot  down  agin,  and  the  hound  came  and  sot  down 
on  the  other  side  of  the  man,  and  then  he  began  to  talk :  — 

"  John  Norton,  I  came  to  these  woods  a  miserable  miser. 
There  was  in  all  my  life  but  one  love,  and  that  was  for 
money.  Money  I  loved,  loved  it  with  all  the  strength  of 
my  nature.  For  years  I  had  thought  of  nothing  else,  and 
cared  for  nothing  else.  For  years  I  had  no  joy  but  the 
fierce  joy  of  seeing  it  and  counting  it.  To  me  my  money 
was  all  there  was  in  the  whole  universe  worth  loving,  —  the 
one  idol  of  my  soul.  Well,  I  brought  it  here  because  no 
man  was  here,  and  hence  knew  it  could  not  be  stolen. 
With  it  safe,  T  was  happy.    With  it  secure,  I  asked  no  higher 


84  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

boon.  I  was  not  only  a  miser,  but  I  was  hardened  in  all 
my  nature.  The  lust  of  gold  had  eaten  out  all  other  crav 
ings.  All  noble  affections,  all  tender  sympathies,  all  truth- 
ful qualities,  all  charities  and  fine  emotions  had  been  by 
this  all-absorbing  passion,  banished  from  my  bosom.  I  was 
only  a  shell  of  a  man  inhabited  by  one  great  devil.  This 
devil  in  me  had  his  fierce  joy,  his  tormenting  suspicions, 
his  rending  rage,  his  agonies  and  his  pangs ;  but  no  trace 
of  humanity,  no  fiber  of  charity,  no  possibility  of  peace. 
Thus  possessed,  I  came  to  this  lake.  You  must  not  think  I 
had  not  been  entreated;  for  man  and  women  had  alike 
been  faithful  to  me,  and  with  prayers,  with  tears,  with 
warnings  and  exhortations  had  they  striven  to  deliver  me 
from  the  devil  within,  and  bring  me  to  my  right  mind.  But 
neither  man  nor  woman,  neither  wife  nor  child,  nor  the 
Spirit  of  God  acting  in  and  through  these  could  make  me 
see  the  sinfulness  of  my  sin,  nor  the  emptiness  of  my  pas- 
sion, nor  the  vanity  of  my  life.  These  I  could  resist  and 
had  resisted.  Man  could  not  master  the  devil  in  me  nor 
drive  him  out  "of  my  soul." 

"  But  here  the  demon  was  met  by  other  agents  and  agen- 
cies he  could  not  resist,  and  here  the  devil  in  mo  was  mas- 
tered. By  whom  and  what?  By  Nature,  I  reply,  and  by 
the  irresistible  majesties  of  God  in  Nature.  Here  the  great- 
ness of  my  surroundings  made  me  small,  and  the  immeas- 
urable splendors  above  me  at  night,  and  the  glories  around 
me  by  day,  made  my  gold  seem  contemptible.  Not  that 
these  influences  came  to  be  felt  at  once ;  not  that  the  con- 
viction produced  by  them  was  sudden,  for  it  was  not ;  but 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        85 

slowly,  subtly,  and  in  a  way  I  could  not  fight ;  with  a  power 
I  could  not  resist,  out  of  the  silence  of  space,  out  of  the 
blue  sky  and  the  uplifted  mountains,  out  of  sunrise  and 
sunset,  out  of  the  water  and  the  air,  out  of  the  solemn 
nights  and  the  succession  of  splendid  days  there  came  re- 
generation to  my  soul.  Within  me  was  born  in  this  mysti- 
cal way  a  sense  of  larger  and  holier  things,  and  moods  of 
worship,  and  generous  thoughts,  and  longings  for  what  was 
fine  and  far  ahead  ;  so  that,  involuntarily,  and  before  I  was 
aware,  a  change  came  to  me  in  my  likes  and  feelings,  and  I 
beheld  as  with  eyes  newly  opened  the  significance  of  things, 
the  use  of  life  and  the  true  application  of  its  lessons.  I 
said  that  my  eyes  were  opened ;  and  they  were,  so  that  I  who 
had  never  thought  of  the  beyond  and  the  coming,  but  had 
lived  in  the  here  and  the  now,  was  compelled  by  a  force 
within  me  to  look  constantly  up  and  ahead  into  the  great 
unseen  and  unknown.  And  this  force  within  me  I  could 
not  resist.  It  was  stronger  than  my  will  and  mightier  than 
habit,  and,  forced  by  its  energy,  I  yielded.  And  then  out 
of  the  unknown  and  the  unseen  there  came  forth,  as  the 
blaze  of  a  beacon  from  darkness  and  distance,  a  vision,  and 
it  scared  me  at  first  to  face  it,  but  at  last  I  was  able ;  and 
the  vision  that  blazed  out  upon  me  from  the  darkness  and 
the  distance,  terrible  in  its  brightness,  was  the  Idea  of  Im- 
mortality." 

"  John  Norton,  this  idea  haunted  me.  The  idea  of  life 
beyond,  stretching  on  forever  and  forever,  unintermittent 
and  endless,  lay  like  a  mountain  on  my  guilty  soul.  And 
out  of  the  conception  came  interrogations  that  searched  me 


86  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

through  and  through  like  a  knife.  And  out  of  this  search- 
ing, amid  agony  and  pangs,  was  born  a  Conscience  :  a  Con- 
science  which  pinched  me  like  a  vice,  and  wrung  groans 
and  cries  of  remorse  out  of  my  mouth,  until,  at  times,  the 
silence  of  the  night  was  filled  with  my  moaning.  It  was 
the  silence  that  did  it,  old  man ;  for  the  silence  was  more 
than  silence :  it  was  GOD.  I  could  not  fly  from  it;  I  could 
not  escape  its  rebukes;  I  could  not  hide  myself  from  its 
solemn  upbraidings.  .It  condemned  me  for  the  life  I  had 
lived;  it  upbraided  me  for  the  passion  I  had  nursed;  it 
threatened  me  with  the  censure  of  a  just  and  holy  verdict. 
Here,  on  this  point,  in  the  midst  of  the  all-surrounding 
silence,  I  found  my  Judgment  Day.  Here  my  mind  lost 
the  petty  measurement  of  time,  and  took  to  itself  in  per- 
fect sensing  the  realization  of  eternity.  Here  I  wrestled 
with  the  Spirit  that  has  not  form,  and  strove  with  the 
energy  that  can  never  be  incarnate :  the  Spirit  of  Justice 
and  Love  commingled  with  the  energy  of  God.  Here,  old 
man,  I  strove ;  here  I  was  overcome ;  and  here  I  yielded ; 
aye,  yielded  to  a  test.  And  the  test  was  this :  that  I  should 
deliberately,  with  my  own  hands,  empty  into  the  waters  of 
this  lake  the  gold  I  had  loved  like  a  devil ;  and  to  keep 
which,  without  fear  of  losing  it,  I  had  been  self-banished 
from  my  kindred  and  kind  and  had  come  to  this  lonely  lake. 
Yes,  I  yielded ;  yielded  to  the  power  I  could  not  resist;  the 
power  of  the  Lord  who  made  and  inhabits  these  woods, 
and  whose  presence  I  saw  and  felt  in  their  beauty,  and 
majesty,  and  silence.  And  I  cried  unto  Him  to  whom  I 
had  yielded,  for  strength  to  do  the  test ;  cried  unto  Him  on 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        87 

my  knees,  with  my  hands  on  the  keg  that  held  the  gold, 
for  strength  to  deliver  my  soul  from  its  horrible  spell,  and 
pour  it — yea,  every  dollar  of  it,  — into  the  waters  of  the 
lake.  And  he  gave  me  strength,  old  man,  —  even  in  an. 
swer  to  my  prayer  did  he  strengthen  me  to  do  the  deed, 
which,  being  done,  delivered  me  from  the  spell  of  the 
•power  that  had  held  me,  and  from  the  bondage  to  the  ter- 
rible lust.  And  last  night  the  battle  was  fought,  and  the 
victory  won,  and  I  was  delivered  from  Hell.  For  I  prayed 
unto  Him,  and  he  listened  and  heard ;  and  I  lifted  the  keg 
and  carried  it  to  my  boat,  and  paddled  to  the  middle  of  the 
lake.  And  there,  with  hell  and  heaven  to  see,  I  lifted  the 
keg  in  my  arms  and  held  it  out  over  the  water,  and  poured 
the  gold  I  had  worshipped  into  its  depths.  And  there  and 
then,  when  the  deed  was  done,  the  blessing  of  the  Lord 
came  on  me,  and  His  marvelous  peace  stole  into  my  soul. 
It  came  to  me  from  the  air,  and  the  water,  and  the  sky ; 
from  the  bosom  of  the  white  moon-lighted  stillness  5  from 
the  motionless  woods  aud  the  shores ;  came  to  me  from 
the  nigh  and  the  far ;  from  the  air  around  me  and  the  infi- 
nite spaces  above  and  beyond ;  came  to  me,  Old  Trapper, 
from  the  outbreathings  of  that  God  who  is  Spirit,  and  in 
whom  the  innocent  and  the  forgiven  live,  and  move,  and 
have  being." 

Here  the  man  came  to  a  halt,  Henry,  and  he  looked  into 
my  eyes  as  if  he  wanted  to  see  if  I  understood,  and  arter  a 
minit  or  two  he  said,  —    - 

"  Old  Man,  do  you  understand  me  ? " 

"  Well,"  said  I  to  him,  "  I  can't  say  that  the  trail  of  your 


88  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

talk  is  altogether  plain  to  me,  Mr.  Koberts,  bat  mo  and  the 
hound  has  kept  our  eyes  on  ye  as  ye  blazed  along  on  the 
line,  and  I  guess  we  have  got  the  gineral  direction  of  it.  I 
can  see  for  sartin  that  ye  had  a  rough  trip,  and  a  heavy 
pack  to  carry,  and  ye  must  have  found  it  hard  backin'  at 
times.  It  seems  to  me  if  ye  had  onloaded  earlier  ye  would 
have  fetched  through  in  better  shape  and  saved  valable 
time,  for  ye  look  to  me  like  a  man  who  hasn't  got  over  the 
carry  'til  dusk,  and  can't  be  of  much  sarvice  to  the  camp 
'til  another  sunrise ;  but  I  think  ye  have  got  across  for  sar- 
tin and  are  out  of  the  woods,  and  that's  a  good  deal  to  say 
of  a  man  who  has  been  lost  and  fooled  away  half  his  day 
by  walking  in  circles,  and  I  rejice  that  ye  are  where  ye  are, 
aud  know  which  way  the  trail  leads  arter  this  and  if  ye  are 
sartin  of  the  lay  of  the  land  ahead  and  know  where  the 
line  ye  are  on  leads  to,  ye  oughter  feel  contented  and  hap- 
py like,  as  I  dare  say  ye  do,  Mr.  Eoberts." 

"  Yes  I  do  feel  contented  and  happy,"  said  he,  '  happier 
than  words  may  tell.  My  sin  has  been  great,  but  the  mercy 
of  God  is  greater,  and  I  feel  I  can  trust  Him  here  and  be- 
yond. I  have  lived  as  no  man  should  live,  but  here,  on  this 
beach  to-day,  my  life  will  end,  and  when  I  am  gone  you 
may  think  of  me,  as  a  sinner  whose  sin  was  forgiven  and 
whose  soul  had  found  peace." 

Arter  this  he  didn't  say  much  for  some  time  but  lay  with 
his  eyes  lookin'  up  to  the  sky  and  a  quiet  sort  of  a  look  on 
his  face.  I  conceited  the  man  was  thinkin'  of  things,  and 
it  may  be  of  people,  a  good  ways  off,  and  that  it  wouldn't  be 
right  to  distarb  him  in  his  meditations.    But  arter  a  while 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        89 

I  said  to  him,  for  I  felt  a  little  oneasy  on  the  subject,  for  I 
leered  he  would  forgit  it,  —  "  Mr.  Eoberts,  ye  spoke  about 
some  directions  ye  wanted  to  give  me,  and  perhaps  ye  had 
better  say  what  ye  have  in  mind  on  the  matter,  so  me  and 
the  hound  may  know  jest  what  ye  want  done  by  and  by; 
for  we  shall  mind  and  do  jest  as  ye  tell  us,  if  it  be  within 
the  range  of  our  gifts,  and  death  don't  overtake  us  on  the 
arrand." 

"Well,  arter  a  little  while  he  turned  his  eyes  on  me  and 
said :  — 

"  I  suppose  it  don't  make  much  difference  where  or  how 
my  body  is  buried,  after  I  am  gone;  do,  you,  Old  Trapper V 

"Well,  no,  I  don't  thiDk  it  does,  Mr.  Eoberts,  when  ye  git 
right  down  to  the  gist  of  the  matter ;  but  every  cretur'  is 
born  with  his  prejudices,  and  has  his  own  idees  of  what  is 
right  and  proper  teaching  things  to  be  done ;  and  I  conceit 
the  Lord  allows  a  man  to  fetch  his  line  about  where  he 
pleases  in  pints  of  parsonal  jedgment :  and  if  I  was  in  yer 
place  I  should  have  my  own  way  about  my  burial,  and  have 
every  thin'  did  straight  and  systematic-like,  accordin'  to  my 
own  idees  of  the  thing.  Now,  me  and  the  hound  there,  has 
our  own  notions  about  the  treatment  the  mortal  frame 
should  receive  arter  the  speerit  has  left  it,  and  we  conceit 
that  it  should  be  treated  as  a  Huron  treats  his  lodge  when 
he  is  about  to  move  out  of  it  forever.  But  we  can  guess 
our  notions  wouldn't  suit  ye  nor  seem  reasonable-like,  be- 
cause ye  was  edicated  another  way,  and  I  have  always 
noted  that  a  man  sticks  to  his  arly  edication  as  a  moose 
sticks  to  his  gait.    So  we  won't  distarb  ye  with  our  idees ; 


90  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

but  do  jest  as  ye  tell  us  to,  even  if  it  be  agiu  reason,  as  me 
and  the  hound  understand  it  ? " 

Well,  the  man  seemed  to  be  sort  of  encouraged  to  say 
his  mind  out  arter  what  I  had  said,  and  arter  looking  at 
the  sky  awhile,  with  his  eyes  half  shet,  he  said  :  — 

"  Do  you  know,  John  Norton,  for  days  I  have  been 
haunted  with  the  fear  of  dying  alone.  I  dare  say  it  is 
foolish  of  me,  but  I  can't  help  it,  nevertheless,  and  I  praise 
the  Lord  that  He  has  sent  you  to  me  in  the  hour  of  my 
need.  The  sight  of  your  face  helps  me  beyond  what  I  can 
tell,  and  the  sound  of  your  voice  has  banished  the  terrible 
loneliness  from  my  soul.  Yes,  I  shall  die  happy,  now  that 
the  companionship  of  my  kind  is  given  me  in  death.  When 
I  am  gone  I  want  you  to  give  me  a  decent  burial,  as  they 
do  down  on  the  coast  where  I  was  born.  And  the  way  of 
it  is  this :  They  dress  the  body  in  good  clothes,  and  put  it 
in  a  coffin,  and  they  read  a  chapter  or  two  from  the  Bible 
at  the  house  where  the  man  lived,  and  the  minister  prays 
and  the  choir  sings.  Then  they  take  the  coffin  to  the  grave 
and  bury  it,  and  they  generally  have  a  prayer  at  the  grave ; 
and  they  sod  the  grave,  and  put  a  slab  of  stone  at  the  head, 
and  plant  flowers  on  the  mound.  I  know,  old  man,  that 
you  can't  do  all  this,  and  you  needn't  try.  Only  do  the  best 
you  can,  that  is  all ;  especially  bury  me  so  the  wolves  can't 
get  my  bones,  and  say  a  few  pious  words  above  the  grave." 

Well,  arter  this  he  said  nothin'  for  a  full  hour,  and  I  said 
nothin'  neither,  for  it  was  plain  that  his  feet  was  on  the 
very  edge  of  the  Great  Clearin',  and  I  felt  it  was  nateral  for 
a  man  standin't  at  the  very  end  of  the  trail  to  want  to  look 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        91 

around  him  in  silence  awhile ;  and  so  I  said  nothin7,  for  I 
feared  to  distarb  his  mind  as  he  stood  lookin'  into  the  etar 
nal  world.    By  and  by  he  said :  — 

"  Old  man,  the  hour  is  almost  come  when  I  must  go,  and 
the  way  ahead  is  dark.  I  see  no  light  and  no  helper.  What 
can  I  do  ? » 

"  John  Koberts,"  I  said  j  for  I  could  see  by  the  look  of 
his  face  and  the  fear  in  his  voice,  that  he  was  in  trouble, 
like  a  boy  lost  in  the  woods,  H  stick  to  the  trail  and  keep 
your  eye  on  the  blazed  line  of  His  marcy.  Don't  hurry,  but 
take  it  slow  and  sarcumspectly  and  trust  to  the  rnarkin's. 
I  have  heerd  said  that  the  carry  ye  are  on  led  through  a 
valley,  dim  and  dusky  as  a  stretch  of  pine  land  by  night, 
but  that  the  man  who  stuck  to  the  line  would  fetch  through 
all  right  And  remember,  that  me  and  the  hound  isn't  far 
behind,  and  sartinly  the  Lord  aint  far  ahead ;  so  stick  to 
the  line,  and  don't  swing  a  foot  from  the  trail,  and  ye  will 
strike  risin'  land  afore  long  and  see  light."  And  I  moved 
close  up  to  his  side  and  lifted  his  head  into  my  lap,  so  he 
could  catch  his  breath  easier ;  for  he  was  laborin'  heavily, 
and  I  know'd  he  couldn't  stand  it  much  longer. 

So  I  sot  in  the  sand  holdin'  his  head,  and  the  hound  sot 
at  his  feet,  and  we  both  kept  our  eyes  on  the  face;  and  ar- 
ter  our  fashion  I  prayed  for  the  man,  and  put  the  case  be- 
fore the  Lord  in  a  strong  sort  of  a  way,  I  can  tell  ye. 

Well,  arter  a  while  a  great  change  came  over  his  featurs. 
He  opened  his  eyes  and  looked  into  my  face  in  a  happy  way 
as  if  he  had  seen  a  new  sight,  and  a  smile  crept  over  his 
lips,  and  his  countenance  softened  like  the  clouds  arter 
storm,  and  he  said :  — 


92  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

"  Old  man,  old  man,  I  see  light  ahead  ! "  And  then  he 
drawed  a  long  contented  sort  of  a  breath,  moved  his  legs 
out  easily  in  the  sand,  rolled  his  head  gently  over  in  my 
lap  as  if  goin'  to  sleep,  closed  his  eyes;  and  his  sperit,  with- 
out groan  or  struggle,  stole  out  of  the  body  in  which  it  had 
lodged  so  long  in  trouble,  and  passed  through  the  clear 
light  and  the  air  up  to  its  Maker.  And  that  is  the  way, 
Henry,  he  came  to  the  eend  of  the  trail,  and  I  reckon  he 
found  the  Lord  of  marcy  waitin'  for  him  at  the  edge  of  the 
Clearin'. 

So  I  sot  in  the  sand,  with  the  head  in  my  lap,  closin'  his 
eyes,  and  the  hound,  accordin'  to  his  gifts,  came  and  put 
his  nose  agin  the  cheek,  and  then  walked  down  to  the  end 
of  the  pint,  and  sot  down  on  his  hanches,  and  lifted  hia 
nose  into  the  air  and  lamented." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  DEATH  WATCH. 

"  In  vain  the  she- wolf  stands  at  bay ; 
The  blinded  catamount  that  lies 
High  in  the  boughs  to  watch  his  prey, 
Even  in  the  act  of  springing,  dies."  —  Bryant. 

"TTTELL,  Henry,  I  didn't  do  nothin'  about  the  burial  until 
next  day,  for  I  thought  it  looked  more  decent-like 
not  to  hurry  the  matter  of  the  entarment,  and,  moreover,  I 
conceited  it  was  no  more  than  reasonable  that  me  and  the 
hound  should  hold  a  council  over  the  matter ;  for  there's 
nothin'  helps  a  man's  jedgment  more  on  any  pint,  whether 
it  be  a  funeral  or  a  scrimmage,  than  to  set  down  and  talk  it 
over  with  a  companion,  and  me  and  the  hound  has  con- 
sorted so  much  together  that  we  understand  each  other  and 
never  differ  on  the  main  pints  of  a  case  —  although  I  do 
thiuk  that  he  lost  a  panther  last  fall  by  gittin'  the  scent 
wrong  eend  to  in  his  nose,  and  leading  off  like  an  unlarned 
pup  on  the  heel  of  the  track;  but  the  hound  thought  other- 
wise, and  mayhaps  I  was  mistaken.  So  I  went  down,  on 
the  eend  of  the  pint  where  he  was  lamentin'  accordin'  to  his 
gifts,  and  put  it  to  him  that  we  had  better  camp  just  where 
we  was,  on  the  trail,  and  lay  over  till  another  day,  and  I 
give  him  the  reasons  for  it  systematic-like  from  beginnin' 
to  eend,  and  made  the  pints  plain  accordin'  to  the  natur'  of 


94  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

the  case,  and  we  both  agreed  to  it.  And  we  jined  judg- 
ment, furthermore,  in  this,  that  the  body  oughter  be  car- 
ried to  a  camp  and  watched  and  not  left  on  the  pint,  for 
fear  the  varmints  would  git  to  it  over  night  and  spile  the 
corpse.  So  we  went  back  to  the  body,  and  carried  it  to  my 
boat  and  laid  it  down  on  some  boughs  I  had  cut  for  it,  and 
the  hound  followed  on  careful-like  and  sot  down  at  the  feet 
of  the  body,  and  I  got  in  at  the  other  eend  and  shoved  off, 
and  so  we  fetched  the  dead  over  the  water  till  we  come  to 
this  pine  knoll,  and  here  me  and  the  hound  come  ashore 
with  the  body,  and  sot  about  preparin'  for  the  death-watch 
we  know'd  we  must  hold  over  night. 

Well,  Henry,  it  was  sorter  new  work,  ye  see,  for  me  and 
the  hound ;  for  though  I  have  buried  many  a  man  in  the 
trenches  arter  the  fight,  and  though  I  have  kivered  up  a 
good  many  redskins  off  and  on  in  my  life,  yit  I  wasn't  very 
handy  at  the  mournin'  equipments  of  the  settlements.  But 
I  have  seed  many  a  gineral  laid  out  on  his  bier,  in  the  old 
wars,  with  his  uniform  on  and  his  sword  by  his  side,  and 
the  death  sentries  on  duty,  and  the  muffled  drums  all  bea- 
tin' ;  and  I  conceited  that  though  Mr.  Roberts  wasn't  a  gin- 
eral, nor  even  a  privit  in  the  ranks  for  that  matter,  that  he 
should  be  treated  in  an  honorable  way  now  he  was  dead. 

So  I  cut  some  crotches  and  drove  'em  into  the  ground, 
and  made  a  frame  of  small  white  birches,  about  the  size  of 
a  bier,  and  on  these  I  put  a  layer  of  balsam  and  cedar 
boughs,  and  over  these  I  scattered  pine  tufts  ontil  I  had  a 
bed  fit  for  the  dead  or  livin',  gineral  or  privit,  and  I  laid  in 
plenty  of  hard  wood  for  my  fire,  and  some  pitch  knots,  for 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        95 

I  said  to  myself,  '  if  the  animils  come  round  I  will  have  to 
shine  up  on  'em,  and  defend  the  corpse '  j  for  I  feared  the 
panthers  —  for  this  lake  is  a  great  spot  for  the  varmints, 
and  'leven  years  ago  there  was  sartinly  as  many  as  there  is 
now.  And  arter  I  had  got  the  bier  ready  I  laid  the  body  on 
ifc,  and  bolstered  th  head  up  nateral-like,  and  then  me  and 
the  hound  sot  down  to  supper  with  a  dead  man  at  the  table. 
We  didn't  waste  time  in  the  eatin',  for  the  sun  was  already 
down,  and  by  the  time  we  had  cleaned  things  up  night  had 
come. 

Well,  Henry,  I  took  my  stand  at  the  foot  of  the  bier,  and 
kept  my  death-watch,  rifle  in  hand,  steady  as  a  sentry  on 
duty,  save  when  I  stirred  the  fire  or  lighted  a  pine  knot. 
For  the  animils  was  oneasy,  as  they  always  is  when  a  corpse 
is  round,  and  I  needed  the  pine  knots  more  than  once,  and 
some  of  the  varmints  got  the  tech  of  lead  and  the  smell  of 
powder  that  night,  I  tell  ye,  for  they  was  full  of  their  dev- 
ilments, and  made  me  and  the  hound  as  wakeful  as  if  we 
was  surrounded  by  inimies." 

"  Did  you  really  have  to  kill  any  thing  ? "  I  asked,  speak- 
ing for  the  first  time  in  an  hour  j  for  the  Old  Trapper  had 
told  his  story  with  such  naturalness  of  intonation  and  ges- 
ture that  he  had  held  me  spell-bound  by  his  narrative  — 
for  no  one  could  hear  him  tell  the  strange  tale  he  was  tell- 
ing and  not  be  carried  along  by  the  movement  of  it,  —  and 
now  that  he  was  evidently  reaching  the  climax,  I  feared  I 
should  miss  some  detail  of  his  experience  which  being 
omitted  would  mar  the  narration,  so,  hoping  to  hold  his 
utterance  to  the  line  of  actual  occurrence,  I  said,  "  Did  you 
have  to  kill  any  thing,  that  night?  " 


96  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  Well,  yis,  I  did,"  he  replied.  "  I  bored  a  hole  through 
a  dog -wolf  over  there  on  the  beach,  arter  I  had  borne  his 
onnateral  howlin'  as  long  as  a  mortal  could ;  and  I  dropped 
a  cat  from  that  dead  cedar  there,  arter  me  and  the  hound 
had  stood  the  stare  of  her  eyes  for  ten  minutes  or  more, 
and  about  two  in  the  mornin',  a  litter  of  panthers  crawled 
in  on  us  ontil  the  bush  seemed  alive  with  'em,  and  I  lifted 
the  scalp  of  the  biggest  of  the  drove,  arter  he  had  got 
within  forty  feet  of  the  corpse  and  paid  no  more  attention 
to  the  brands  I  pitched  at  him  than  if  they  was  tufts  of 
sod ;  so  with  a  pine  knot  all  afire,  in  one  hand,  to  show  me 
the  sights,  I  drove  the  lead  in  between  his  infarnal  eyes  in 
a  style  that  taught  'em  all  manners  for  the  rest  of  the 
watch.  Yis,  Henry,  we  had  a  solemn  and  lively  time  of  it, 
for  sartin,  that  night,  and  at  times  it  looked  as  if  there 
would  be  no  funeral  the  next  day ;  leastways,  none  that  me 
and  the  hound  would  attend,  onless  we  made  one  for  our- 
selves ;  but  we  stood  to  our  post,  and  between  the  brands 
and  the  lead  and  the  help  of  the  Lord  we  brought  the  body 
through  safe  'til  sunrise. 

But  it  was  mighty  solemn  watchin'  by  the  body  all  by 
myself  on  the  shores  of  this  lake,  here  that  night;  for  at 
times  the  animils  would  make  the  air  roar  and  scream,  and 
the  mountains  to  yelp  as  if  the  upper  world  was  inhabited 
with  cats  and  wolves  and  panthers,  and  then  they  would 
suddenly  become  quiet,  and  the  world  round  about  was 
nothin'  but  silence  with  the  moon  shinin'  through  it :  and 
the  dead  man's  face  was  white  as  the  moon  and  still  as  the 
air,  for  his  troubles  was  over  and  the  marks  of  them  passed 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        97 

from  his  featur's  when  his  breath  went  away.  And  so  me 
and  the  hound  kept  our  watch  by  the  dead,  'til  the  sun  riz 
in  the  east,  and  the  hour  had  come  for  the  funeral." 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  FUNERAL. 

"  And  let  there  be  prepared  a  chariot-bier 
To  take  me  to  the  river,  and  a  barge 
Be  ready  on  the  river." —  Tennyson. 

rpHE  first  thing  to  do  was  to  fix  on  the  spot  for  the  grave, 
which  took  leetle  time  to  settle,  for  it  seemed  natur'l 
that  the  body  should  lie  nigh  where  it  had  lived ;  and  natur* 
sartinly  had  made  a  fit  spot  for  it  jest  up  on  the  bluff,  off 
the  p'int ;  for  it  was  clean  and  sweet  there,  and  the  pines 
was  always  singin'  overhead.  And  if  a  man  is  to  be  buried 
underground,  arter  he  is  dead,  which  me  and  the  hound 
hold  to  be  onreasonable  and  heathenish-like,  I  conceit  he 
should  be  laid  in  a  sightly  spot,  with  a  good  outlook  to  it, 
and  not  stuck  away  in  a  swale  or  mash  as  if  he  was  no  bet- 
ter nor  a  cat,  or  a  root-eatinr  hedge-hog.  So  I  shaped  me  a 
spade  from  a  slab  I  rived  from  a  pine  the  lightnin'  had 
leveled,  and  digged  the  grave  deep  in  the  dry  sand  under 
the  pines,  and  filled  it  half  full  of  pine  stems,  and  cedar- 
twigs,  and  other  sweet  srnellin*  things  that  grow  around ; 
and  on  the  green  stuff  I  flung  in  an  armful  of  white  lilies  I 
plucked  in  the  bay,  to  make  the  bed  look  cheerful  and  fit- 
tin'  for  a  mortal  to  lie  in.  When  this  was  done  I  come  back 
to  this  spot  and  did  to  my  boat  what  I  had  done  to  the 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.        99 

grave  :  made  it  green,  and  sweet,  and  handsome,  with  the 
growths  of  natur'  that  had  pleasant  scents  in  them,  until 
the  boat  was  nigh  on  to  bein'  full.  And  then  I  lifted  the 
body  and  laid  it  at  length,  and  put  the  hands  alongside  each 
other  on  his  breast,  and,  with  the  hound  iu  the  bow  of  the 
boat  and  me  in  the  starn,  I  swung  out  into  the  lake,  and 
with  easy  stroke,  lined  a  course  straight  as  an  arrow  could 
go  toward  the  p'int.  And  so,  without  the  presence  of  wife 
or  child,  or  kin  of  any  kind  to  attend  him ;  without  bell,  or 
drum,  or  priest,  the  man  who  had  desarted  his  home  and 
fellow-bein's  went  toward  his  grave. 

Well,  arter  a  while  the  boat  tetched  the  sand,  and  the 
hound  got  out ;  and  I  shoved  it  up  a  leetle  further  and  I 
got  out,  and  liftin'  the  body  in  my  arms  I  carried  it  up  the 
p'int,  and  climbed  the  knoll  till  I  come  to  the  grave,  and  I 
laid  the  corpse  down  on  the  pine  tufts  and  the  lilies.  And 
I  recalled  all  the  man  had  told  me  about  the  singin'  and 
the  prayer  and  the  Book,  and  I  did  the  best  I  could  under 
the  sarcunj stances,  to  follow  the  trail  of  his  directions,  and 
I  knowed  if  I  did  the  best  I  could  accordin'  to  my  gifts,  the 
sperit  of  the  man  would  overlook  the  rest ;  but  I  felt  sar- 
tin  that  somethin'  oughter  be  said  out  of  the  .ordinary  run 
of  human  talkin',  or  the  man  wouldn't  be  more  than  half 
buried  arter  'twas  all  ended.  And  the  hound  seemed  to 
jine  with  me  in  the  idee,  for  he  looked  up  in  my  face  in  a 
questionin'  way,  as  if  askin'  when  the  sarvice  was  to  begin. 
So  arter  a  minit  I  got  down  on  my  knees  and  told  the  Lord 
what  I  thought  was  jedicious.  I  think  I  can  recall  jest 
about  what  I  said  word  for  word,  for  my  mem'ry  is  good, 


100  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  a  man  don't  talk  overfast,  Henry,  in  sech  sarcum stan- 
ces, and  it  has  all  come  back  to  mo  sence  I  sot  here  to-night 
as  if  it  was  but  yesterday  sence  I  buried  the  man,  and  I 
can  give  ye  the  words  pretty  nigh.  Yis,  I  got  down  on  my 
knees  by  the  edge  of  the  grave  and  said :  — 

"  Great  Sperit,  here  lies  the  body  of  one  of  thy  creturs. 
His  arthly  ways  was  known  to  thee,  and  the  wrong  of  his 
wickedness  was  not  hidden.  He  seems  to  have  straight- 
ened the  trail  of  his  misdoin's  in  the  eend,  and  fetched 
through  to  the  Great  Clearin'  as  a  mortal  should.  But  me 
and  the  hound  know'd  leetle  about  him,  and  jest  how  he 
came  to  thy  presence  we  couldn't  see,  but  it  sartiuly  looked 
hopeful.  Here  me  and  the  hound  has  brought  his  corpse 
for  entarment  accordin'  to  orders,  and  the  trail  at  this  p'int 
is  onsartin',  but  we  mean  to  fetch  through  to  the  eend 
of  this  job  with  thy  help.  So  jest  give  us  a  lift  at  this 
talkin',  that  the  corpse  may  have  a  sarvice  as  is  becomin'. 
Bless  us  in  our  endivers,  and  let  thy  peace,  which  is  one,  as 
I  understand  it,  with  Natur's,  come  on  this  grave  I  am 
buildin',  and  here  rest  until  the  Jedgment  Day.  Then 
squar*  accounts  with  the  man,  not  by  the  line  of  give  and 
take,  so  much  for  so  much,  but  by  the  line  of  marcy  and  of 
overlookin'  of  scant  skins  in  the  man's  count;  and  don't 
forgit  to  reckon  easily  with  me  and  the  hound,  for  we  aro 
rather  onsartin'  consarnin'  the  blazes  on  this  line,  and  sus- 
picion we  may  git  wrong  eend  to  before  we  fetch  through. 
So  be  marciful  to  us  three ;  —  to  the  man  because  of  what 
he  did,  and  to  me  and  the  hound  for  what  we  didn't  know 
how  to  do.    Keep  all  varmints  from  this  grave,  —  sech  as 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.       101 

cats  and  wolves,  —  especially  panthers :  onless  I  am  here 
to  attend  to  them,  in  which  case  ye  may  let  them  come 
rampin'  round  as  much  as  the  creturs'  please,  and  I'll  agree 
to  keep  them  orderly.    Amen.' 

"  Well,  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  after  a  pause,  "  do 
you  think  I  did  the  square  thing  by  the  man  ?  I  did  the 
best  I  could  accordin'  to  my  gifts  and  I  sartinly  trust  the 
corpse  was  satisfied." 

I  could  see  that  the  Old  Trapper  was  troubled  in  regard 
to  the  matter  more  than  he  chose  to  confess,  and  knowing 
how  impossible  it  is  for  one  totally  unaccustomed  to  forms 
of  any  kind  to  fall  into  the  grooves  of  formal  utterance,  I 
could  fully  understand  how  profound  must  have  been  his 
embarrassment  in  attempting  to  conduct  a  funeral  service 
according  to  the  rules  and  methods  which  prevail  in  civi- 
lized, not  to  say  fashionable  communities,  and  as  I  looked 
into  the  simple,  guileless  face  of  the  Old  Trapper,  which 
showed  doubt,  perplexity,  and  pain  in  its  every  wrinkle  and 
furrow,  I  felt  that  I  was  authorized  to  go  as  far  as  I  could 
truthfully  in  the  way  of  comfort,  so  I  said  :  — 

"  I  think  you  did  excellently,  John  Norton ;  and  I  doubt 
not  the  spirit  of  the  man  was  well  satisfied  with  what  you 
did  to  honor  his  body  at  its  burial,  and  I  know  that  the 
Lord  understood  your  circumstances  and  gave  you  full 
credit  for  the  beautiful  spirit  of  obedience  to  the  dead 
man's  wishes  you  showed  in  following  his  instruction." 

"  Well,  I  am  mighty  glad  ye  think  so,  Henry.  I  have  felt 
oneasy  on  the  matter  for  eleven  years,  for  I  feerd  I  had  got 
off  the  track  altogether  in  the  sarvice,  for  I  had  a  dim  line 


102  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

to  trail  by,  as  the  man's  talk  wasn't  very  plain  to  me  to 
start  with,  and  the  hound  was  no  more  help  in  the  matter 
than  an  unlarnt  pup  is  to  a  hunter  on  a  dry  track.  Yis,  I 
sartinly  feel  easier  in  the  matter  arter  what  ye  have  said, 
and  the  Lord  knows  I  meant  only  good  to  the  man,  and 
tried  to  be  respectful  to  the  corpse. 

"  Well,  there  isn't  much  more  to  tell  ye.  Arter  the  sarvice 
I  put  some  green  boughs  over  the  body,  so  that  the  dirt 
wouldn't  tetch  it,  and  filled  it  up  easy-like  and  as  gentle  as 
I  could.  And  when  the  fillin'  was  all  in  I  went  and  cut 
some  sod  with  my  huntin'  knife,  with  the  flowers  all  grow- 
in'  in  them,  and  made  the  grave  as  green  and  pritty  as 
natur  could  be  and  than  I  took  position  soldier-like  and 
let  off  my  piece  as  a  kind  of  farewell  and  the  hound  lifted 
up  his  voice  and  gave  one  lament ;  and  the  sarvice  was 
over." 

Here  the  old  man  paused,  and  as  I  stirred  the  fire  the 
flame  leaped  up  and  brought  the  features  of  his  time- beaten 
face  in  clear  relief.  And  a  remarkable  face  it  was,  and  such 
as  is  seldom  given  to  man  save  when  nature  produces  her 
noblest  work.  It  may  interest  some  who  have  been  in- 
troduced to  him  in  these  pages  and  who  will  meet  him  fur- 
ther on  in  many  scenes,  both  of  peace  and  war,  and  who 
will  grow  to  love  him  for  the  purity  of  his  nature,  and  the 
courage  of  his  conduct  when  exposed  to  temptation  on  the 
?ne  hand  and  peril  and  death  on  the  other,  to  have  a  pen 
portrait  of  one  of  the  most  noted  characters  that  the  latter 
part  of  the  last  century  and  the  early  half  of  the  present 
one  produced. 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.       103 

John  Norton  was,  even  in  his  seventieth  year  over  six  feet 
in  height,  but  so  symmetrical  was  his  proportion  in  his 
physical  stature  that  great  as  it  was,  it  was  neither  awk- 
ward nor  ungainly.  Temperate  in  his  habits,  and  coustant 
in  the  exercises  which  develop  and  retain  muscular  power, 
he  was  even  at  the  time  of  our  story  a  marvel  of  physical 
streugth.  But  for  the  fact  that  his  eye  may  have  lost  a 
trifle  of  its  earlier  brightness,  and  that  his  hair  once  black 
as  a  raven's  wing  was  now  sprinkled  with  threads  of  gray, 
it  would  have  been  impossible  to  believe  he  had  reached 
the  period  of  threescore  years  and  ten,  for  his  form  was 
still  erect,  his  step  elastic  and  his  voice  clear  and  strong. 
His  face  was  of  that  square,  strong  shape,  such  as  you  see 
in  a  few  of  the  older  men  still  living  in  New  England  but 
who  are  fast  passing  away,  and  with  them  we  fear  the  typo 
of  self-reliant  and  indomitable  character  they  represent. 
His  eyebrows  were  large  and  abundant,  and  projected  oyer 
the  eyes.  The  eyes  themselves  were  gray  and  changeful 
in  color  according  to  the  method  of  the  speaker.  His  nose 
was  large,  and  straight  and  full  at  the  nostrils  and  broad  at 
the  base.  His  mouth  was  firm  and  in  a  marked  manner 
suggestive  of  power.  His  chin  was  round  and  handsome. 
Into  this  noble  and  remarkable  countenance  time  had  chan- 
neled many  a  line,  and  the  years  had  spread  the  repose  of 
age  without  weakening  the  aspect  of  determined  strength. 
In  color  the  skin  was  of  course  bronzed,  but  of  so  pure  a 
tan  that  the  blood  showed  almost  as  plainly  as  in  an  un- 
tanned  countenance.  And,  as  he  sat  at  the  close  of  his 
narrative  gazing  into  the  fire  with  his  face  almost  solemn 


104  ADIKONDACK   TALES. 

in  the  gravity  of  its  expression  I  said  to  myself  as  I  gazed 
steadily  at  it,  revealed  in  its  every  line  and  wrinkle  as  it 
was  by  the  clear  blaze,  "  I  have  never  seen  so  noble  and  re- 
markable a  countenance  among  men."  I  grew  to  love  it  in 
subsequent  years  as  a  son  loves  the  face  of  a  father  in 
whom  is  no  guile. 

At  last  he  started  from  his  revery  and  said,  "  Henry,  the 
morn  is  comin',  for  I  feel  the  changes  in  the  air  that  tell 
the  beginnin'  of  day.  Let  us  heave  the  rest  of  the  logs  on 
the  fire  and  stretch  ourselves  for  a  nap,  for  natui0  has  her 
rights  and  must  be  dealt  reasonably  with.  We  will  sleep 
now,  and  by  and  by  I  will  show  you  the  man's  grave." 

I  did  as  he  requested  and  then,  stretched  at  full  length 
on  either  side  of  the  fire,  we  fell  asleep. 

The  sun  was  high  in  the  heaven  before  I  awoke.  I 
rubbed  my  eyes  to  make  sure  of  my  sight  as  I  started  up, 
for  breakfast  was  ready,  and  the  Old  Trapper  sat  on  the  log 
patiently  waiting  my  waking.  The  old  man  divined  my 
thought,  for  he  said :  "  Nay,  nay,  Henry,  you  need  not  feel 
hurt  because  I  got  the  start  of  ye ;  for  sleep  to  the  young 
is  sweet,  and  I  could  not  wake  ye  till  natur'  was  satisfied. 
But  the  eyelids  of  the  old  rest  lightly  on  their  balls,  and 
the  rays  of  the  sun  wakes  me  quicker  nor  a  bugler's  note 
rouses  a  soger.  So  me  and  the  hound  have  been  stirrin' 
about,  and  between  your  pack  and  mine  we  have  got  a 
meal  lit  for  a  king.  So  jest  take  a  dip  in  the  lake  off  that 
rock  there,  and  we  will  try  the  vartue  of  the  victals." 

After  breakfast  was  over,  the  Old  Trapper  said,  "  Come, 
Henry,  we  will  go  to  the  grave,  and  I  will  show  ye  where 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.       105 

the  body  of  an  unhappy  man  lies  buried.  I  warrant  the 
hound  remembers  the  spot  as  well  as  I  do." 

A  few  minutes  brought  us  to  the  point  where  we  landed. 
The  hound  being  in  the  bow  of  the  boat,  had  touched  the 
shore  first,  and  mounted  the  bank.  No  sooner  had  he 
reached  the  top  than  he  lifted  his  nose  into  the  air,  turned 
around  once  in  his  tracks  as  a  hound  will  when  searching 
for  knowledge,  then  started  in  a  straight  line  for  the  bluff. 

"  Aye,  aye,  I  know'd  the  dog  would  recollect  the  spot," 
said  the  Trapper,  "  and  there  he  goes  on  a  trail  that's  been 
whitened  by  the  snows  of  'leven  winters  as  if  he  was  arter 
a  buck  jest  started  from  his  nest  in  the  moss.  It's  sartinly 
wonderful  what  sense  the  Lord  has  given  to  his  creturs, 
sech  as  the  beaver  and  the  dog,  and  even  a  wolf  in  the 
darkest  night  can  tell  the  toe  from  the  heel  of  a  track,  and 
I  have  seen  the  wild  hosses  on  the  prairies  act  as  sarcum- 
spect  as  if  they  was  reasouin'  mortals." 

At  this  point  the  long,  solemn  cry  of  the  hound  rose  into 
the  air  and  rolled  in  mournful  cadence  over  the  lake.  The 
Old  Trapper  halted  a  moment,  and  then  as  he  turned  to- 
ward me,  he  said :  — 

"  You  see  Henry,  the  heart  of  the  dog  is  true  to  his  mem- 
ory of  the  spot.  I  have  heerd  many  a  dog  give  vent  to  his 
grief  over  the  grave  of  his  master,  long  years  arter  it  was 
made,  and  it  should  larn  us  mortals  to  be  true  to  what  we 
have  promised  the  dead,  and  keep  their  graves  green  and 
sweet  arter  they  have  gone.  Henry,  I  feel  a  leetle  oneasy 
lest  somethin'  of  ill  has  happened  to  the  corpse  on  the 
bluff.    Come,  let  us  go  and  see." 


106  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

So  saying,  he  started  for  the  knoll,  and  I  followed  on. 
We  soon  reached  the  upper  edge,  and  the  grave,  with  the 
hound  sitting  on  his  haunches  at  the  foot  of  it,  was  before 
us.  The  Old  Trapper's  face  brightened  as  he  saw  it  had  not 
been  disturbed,  for,  except  that  the  mound  had  shrunken 
somewhat,  and  that  the  green  growths  of  nature  were  more 
luxuriant,  it  was  evidently  the  same  as  when  it  had  been 
fashioned  eleven  years  before. 

The  Old  Trapper  paused  as  he  reached  the  head  of  the 
mound,  and  leaning  on  the  muzzle  of  his  rifle,  said,  "Henry, 
the  Lord  has  sartinly  been  marciful,  and  kept  the  grave  on- 
distarbed,  and  natur'  has  made  it  handsomer  than  it  was 
when  me  and  the  hound  left  it ;  and  a  sightly  spot  it  is,  and 
a  cheerful  one  for  a  grave  to  be  in,  for  the  view  up  the  lake 
is  a  good  un,  as  ye  see,  Henry,  and  the  pines  overhead 
keep  up  a  pleasant  sort  of  a  darge.  Yis,  it  sartinly  is  a 
cheerful  spot  for  a  grave,  and  if  me  and  the  hound  could 
make  it  seem  reasonable  to  us  we  would  sartinly  pick  some 
sech  spot  as  this  to  lie  in  arter  we  are  dead ;  but  it  don't 
square  with  our  notions  of  right  and  wrong,  and  we  can't 
make  it  nohow,  though  we  have  held  many  a  council  over 
it.  Still,  a  grave  makes  solemn  and  instructive  company 
for  a  mortal,  especially  for  one  as  old  as  me  and  the  hound ; 
and  it  may  be,  a  leetle  overhaulin'  the  pack,  and  goin'  over 
the  count  of  the  years  we  have  lived  sence  we  left  this 
grave,  wouldn't  do  either  of  us  any  hurt;  and  as  it  is  a 
matter  that  the  young  and  them  that  has  long  life  ahead  of 
them  aint  much  interested  in,  perhaps  it  may  be  as  well 
that  ye  go  back  to  the  camp  and  pack  things  up  for  a  start, 


THE  STORY  THAT  THE  KEG  TOLD  ME.       107 

Henry,  for  we  will  take  to  the  boats  when  me  and  the 
hound  has  done  with  our  meditations. 

Appreciating  the  wish  of  the  Old  Trapper  to  be  for  a 
brief  time  alone,  I  retired  down  the  knoll,  and  entering  the 
boat  was  soon  at  the  camp.  As  I  stepped  ashore,  I  cast 
my  eyes  across  the  bay  to  the  bluff,  and  then  I  uncovered 
my  head.  The  Old  Trapper,  with  the  hound  looking  stead- 
ily into  his  upturned  face,  was  kneeling  at  the  head  of  the 
grave,  engaged  in  prayer. 


THE   STORY  OF 

THE  MAN  WHO  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH. 

Part  I. 


THE  MAN  WHO  DIM'T  KNOW  MUCH. 
CHAPTER  I. 

THE  BEATER'S  LODGE. 

"  For  men  like  these  on  earth  he  shall  not  find 
In  all  the  miscreant  race  of  human  kind." 

Homer,  Pope's  Translation. 

TT  was  early  autumn,  and  the  woods  were  only  just  be- 
ginning to  take  to  themselves  the  variegated  colors 
which  make  our  northern  forests  a  wonder  to  foreigners 
and  an  annual  delight  to  those  who  live  within  sight  of 
their  glorious  changes,  that  two  men  might  have  been  seen 
forcing  their  way  through  the  underbrush  of  a  tamarack 
swamp,  which  divided  two  small  lakes  near  the  centre  of 
the  wilderness.  On  the  shoulders  and  head  of  one  was 
balanced  a  birch  canoe,  larger  than  the  average  make, 
while  the  other  was  literally  loaded  down  beneath  a  mon- 
strous pack-basket,  which  was  not  only  full  of  camp  and 
trapping  materials,  but  had  tied  to  it  a  dozen  and  one  arti- 
cles for  culinary  and  camp  use.  In  a  few  moments  the 
man  under  the  canoe  came  to  a  halt,  and  laying  it  gently 
on  the  ground,  he  turned  to  his  companion  and  said :  — 

"  Come,  Henry,  let's  halt  a  minit  and  git  breath.    This 
is  sartinly  a  tough  carry,  and  ye  are  loaded  like  a  sinner 


112  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

at  the  Day  of  Jedgment,  when  as  I  have  heerd  the  mis- 
sioners  say  mortals  will  be  summoned  into  court  with  all 
their  devilments  on  top  of  'em.  And  while  ye  have  nothin' 
that  an  honest  man  need  be  ashamed  of,  even  in  front  of 
the  Lord,  yit  I  will  say  that  ye  are  mighty  heavily  cum- 
bered with  the  fixin's,  for  sartin,  and  yer  legs  must  feel  in 
a  rebellious  state  agin  sech  treatment  as  ye've  been  givin 
'em  for  the  last  mile ;  for  if  there's  any  thing  that  will  set 
the  sinews  in  a  man's  thighs  twitchin'  and  sort  of  knottin'- 
up  like,  its  fetchin'  a  carry  through  a  tamarack  swamp  like 
this,  with  a  whole  camp  on  his  back,  and  no  bottom  worth 
speakin'  on  under  him.  That's  right,  —  settle  down  there 
on  that  bog  and  squirm  out  of  the  straps  and  ease  yerself 
awhile.  I'll  bet  the  wales  on  yer  shoulders  are  red  as  a 
rat's  hide  when  the  meat  has  peeled  with  it ;  and  as  for  yer 
neck,  the  infarnal  basket,  Henry,  has  rasped  it  like  a  file. 
How  do  ye  feel  inwardly,  for  I  know  ye  smart  outwardly  T " 

"  0, 1  feel  all  right,"  replied  his  companion.  "  Of  course 
the  straps  have  cut  into  me  a  little,  and  the  basket  has 
worn  through  the  skin  somewhat,  I  guess,  by  the  feeling 
on  my  neck ;  but  I  am  good  for  the  distance  between  here 
and  the  lake,  wherever  it  is ;  and  when  we  get  through,  if 
it  is  a  decent  place  to  look  at,  we  will  take  a  rest  and  a 
good  strong  meal  too,  for  I  am  as  empty  as  a  last  year's 
gourd." 

"  I  like  the  sound  of  yer  talk,  Henry,"  said  the  old  man, 
whom  our  readers  will  have  easily  recognized  as  John  Nor- 
ton, the  Trapper,  and  his  companion  as  Henry  Herbert,  "I 
like  the  sound  of  yer  talk,"  continued  the  old  man,  laugh- 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  113 

ing ;  "  and  I  can  well  believe  ye;  for  ye  have  the  look -of  a 
man  whose  loadin'  is  all  on  the  outside  and  none  of  it  in, 
and  I  should  ventur'  the  opinion  that  a  pound  or  two  of 
that  steak  ye  have  in  the  basket  there,  jediciously  spitted 
and  eaten  slowly,  'twixt  proper  allowances  of  corn  cakes 
and  spring  water,  re-inforced  with  a  few  leaves  of  the  tea, 
would  round  ye  out  and  make  ye  look  sort  of  enhabited- 
like ;  for  I  have  always  noted  that  a  man  with  no  victals 
in  him  looks  like  a  desarted  settlement, — kinder  lonesome, 
and  a  good  deal  as  if  a  funeral  was  goin'  on  inside  of  him. 
But  another  good  lift  will  bring  us  out  of  this  snarl  of  tam- 
arack and  put  our  feet  onto  the  beach  of  as  handsome  a 
lake  as  the  Lord  ever  made,  even  here  in  these  woods, 
where  he  does  seem  to  have  did  his  best,  and  kept  at  it  a 
long  while,  too ;  for  I  think,  'twixt  trappin'  and  boatin',  I've 
been  on  a  thousand  of  'em  off  and  on  in  the  last  forty 
year;  but  a  prittier  one  than  lies  ahead  of  us  never  had 
its  springs  set  runnin',  if  I  am  "any  jedge.  So  crawl  into 
yer  straps,  Henry,  and  I  will  give  yer  pack  a  hist,  and  we 
will  see  how  soon  we  can  fetch  out  of  this  devilment  of 
bushes ;  for  a  tamarack  swamp  is  the  devil's  own  work  in 
natur'  for  sartin ;  and  if  a  man  who  is  nothin'  but  ordinary, 
and  hasn't  been  favored  in  pious  edication,  can  bring  a  boat 
or  a  pack  through  one  of  'em  and  not  get  sort  of  strong 
and  arnest-like  in  his  speech,  it  is  because  the  Lord  is  on- 
usually  marciful  to  him,  anyhow." 

So  saying,  the  Old  Trapper  lifted  the  canoe  on  to  his 
shoulders,  and  pushed  determinedly  on  through  the  dense 
thicket,  whose  dried,  thorny  branches  scraped  and  rattled 


114  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

against  the  bottom  and  sides  of  the  canoe,  until  the  noise 
might  have  been  heard  miles  away.  * 

At  last,  after  twenty  minutes  or  so  of  desperate  strug- 
gling, in  which  the  strength  and  temper  of  both  must  have 
been  severely  taxed,  the  Old  Trapper  burst  out  of  the  op- 
posing brush,  and  cast  the  canoe  upon  the  yellow  sands  of 
a  beach  which  curved  its  line  of  gold  around  the  northern 
shore  of  a  lake.  In  an  instant,  Herbert  tore  his  way  out  of 
the  swamp,  and  without  saying  a  word,  settled,  with  the 
pack  still  on  his  back,  into  the  soft  sand.  His  pantaloons 
were  seriously  torn,  his  hair  full  of  moss-dust,  and  bits  of 
dried  twigs,  while  his  face  was  fairly  white  with  weariness. 

"Well,  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he  looked  at 
him,  after  having  unbuckled  the  straps  which  bound  the 
pack  to  his  companion's  shoulders,  "  ye  look  as  if  ye  had 
been  in  a  tussle  that  taxed  ye,  and  yer  breeches  seem  as  if 
they  had  got  the  wust  of  it  lor  sartiu.  I  have  never  liked 
the  tailoiin'  of  the  settlements,  for  I  have  never  seed  any 
of  their  work  that  would  hold  when  a  man  was  in  the  cen- 
ter of  a  tamarack  thicket,  or  a  windfall,  and  got  sort  of 
arnest-like  in  his  feelin's.  Summer  afore  the  last,  a  man 
from  the  coast,  that  I  run  agin  in  a  mighty  weak  condition, 
aud  sort  of  nussed  back  to  life,  sent  me  a  box  of  stuff,  aud 
it  had  for  sartin  a  great  many  useful  things  in  it,  sech  as 
traps,  powder  and  lead,  not  to  speak  of  tea  and  other  yarbs 
for  medicine.  Yis,  he  sartinly  put  in  a  good  many  things 
accordiu'  to  reason,  and  useful  to  a  man  of  my  gifts;  but 
he  missed  the  trail  entirely  in  one  thing,  for  he  sent  me,  all 
done  up  as  pritty  as  could  be,  and  tied  with  red  string,  a 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  115 

whole  suit  of  garments  that  he  called  black  cloth,  or  wide 
cloth,  or  some  sech  name,  not  to  speak  of  hat  like  the 
cliapeau  the  militia  wore  fifty  years  agone,  and  which  I 
could  no  more  keep  on  my  head  in  this  bush  than  a  beaver 
could  keep  his  fur  in  spring-time.  But  I  felt  sartin  the 
man  meant  it  for  good,  and  to  sort  of  please  his  mem'ry, 
and  show  proper  feelin'  in  the  matter,  I  sot  apart  a  day  to 
celebrate  the  man's  good-heartedness ;  and  I  got  into  the 
things,  hat  and  all,  and  if  ye  b'lieve  me,  Henry,  when  I 
looked  in  the  glass  I  didn't  know  myself.  And  I  said, 
'John  Norton,  be  this  you! "  And  I  marveled,  Henry,  that 
a  mortal  could  so  change  himself  by  a  few  clothes  that  he 
should  be  strange  in  his  own  eyes.  But  the  thing  that 
seemed  queerest  of  all  was  that  the  hound  there,  that  ye 
know  is  a  knowin'  dog,  and  a  obsarvin'  one,  too,  who  had 
been  foolin'  around  with  a  young  faan  in  the  thickets  for 
exercise,  come  in,  and  seem'  me  settin'  in  a  cheer,  hat  and 
all  on,  whirled  his  tail  round  and  let  a  threatnin'  roar  out 
of  his  mouth  that  made  the  cabin  ring,  and  he  showed  his 
teeth  in  a  way  to  make  flesh  of  a  cowardly  half-breed  creep. 
Yis,  Henry,  to  think  that  a  few  city  garments  could  change 
a  man  so  even  his  own  hound  wouldn't  know  him  ontil  he 
heerd  his  voice,  and  actally  got  his  scent  in  his  nose.  I 
have  spent  a  good  many  hours  wonderin'  about  it,  I  tell  ye. 
Well,  Henry,  I  never  tried  on  the  coat  and  vest  and  hat 
agin,  ye  may  believe,  for  they  was  useless  to  one  of  my 
gifts,  and  made  the  hound  onhappy ;  but  I  did  think  the 
breeches  would  sarve  me  awhile,  for  they  was  roomy  and 
looked  as  fine  and  tough  as  a  doeskin  j  and  so  I  detar- 


116  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

mined  to  give  them  a  try.  I  put  them  on  one  mornin' 
when  startin'  on  a  still  hunt,  and  by  the  Lord,  Henry,  when 
I  got  back  at  night  there  wasn't  any  breeches  on  me,  least- 
wise nothin'  to  make  a  fair  show  on  a  man  in  the  settle- 
ments. It  was  amazin'  how  they  went  to  pieces.  The 
briers  went  through  them  as  if  they  was  paper.  I  left 
them  all  along  the  line  of  my  trail  as  a  bear  leaves  the  fur 
in  the  beginnin'  of  summer.  And  it  lamed  me  a  lesson 
tetchin'  the  tailorin'  of  the  settlements  which  I  shall  never 
forgit.  And  ever  sence  we  started  on  the  trip  I  have  felt 
onsartin  about  yer  garments,  and  though  they  have  held 
on  agin  all  expectation,  yit,  sooner  or  later,  I  knowed  they 
would  play  a  prank  on  ye  and  gin  out  sudden-like.  And  if 
ye  will  take  my  advice  ye  will  let  me  make  ye  a  good  pair 
of  buckskin  I've  tanned  with  my  own  hands,  and  I  warrant 
ye  will  never  get  a  brier  through  them  or  feel  oneasy  about 
yer  appearance  in  company." 

"While  the  old  man  had  been  talking,  Herbert  had  re- 
mained stretched  at  length  upon  the  sand  with  his  head 
bolstered  against  the  pack  basket,  recovering  his  breath 
and  gaziug  with  eyes  which  drank  in  the  loveliness  of  the 
scene  around  him.  It  is  doubtful  if  he  had  even  heard  half 
the  Old  Trapper  had  been  sayiDg,  so  absorbed  was  he  in 
contemplation  of  what  would  seem  to  one  unaccustomed  to 
such  scenes,  more  like  a  picture  from  Fairy  Land  than  an 
actual  landscape  of  the  earth.  The  lake  was  perhaps  a 
short  mile  in  length,  and  bordered  with  high  hills  both  on 
the  eastern  and  western  shores.  The  whole  northern  end 
was  in  the  form  of  a  sickle,  and  ornamented  with  a  beach 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  117 

of  sand  of  brightest  yellow.  The  southern  and  eastern 
shores  were  bordered  with  a  marsh  whoso  deep  green  grass, 
brightened  here  and  there  with  various  colored  flowers, 
stretched  far  out  into  the  shallow  waters  of  the  lake.  The 
shores  were  thickly  wooded  with  evergreens,  while  here 
and  there  a  maple,  far  up  the  hillside,  flung  out  its  flame  of 
color  as  a  royal  banner,  planted  in  some  ivied  recess  of  an 
ancient  castle,  might  wave  its  rich  blazonry  forth  to  the 
passing  breeze.  At  last,  as  if  his  soul  had  drunk  its  fill  of 
the  surrounding  beauty,  Herbert  rose  to  his  feet,  and  still 
gazing  off  upon  the  water,  said:  "John  Norton,  this  is  lovely  ; 
by  what  name  is  this  lake  called,  or  has  it  no  name  ?  I 
have  never  seen  a  sweeter  sheet  of  water." 

"I  am  glad  ye  think  so,  Henry,"  rejoined  the  Trapper; 
"  for  I  have  always  thought  it  was  about  the  best  the  Lord 
could  do  in  this  line,  and  many  be  the  days  and  nights  I 
have  spent  on  its  quiet  shores,  for  I  have  know'd  it  off  and 
on  for  fifty  year ;  and  the  first  time  I  ever  sot  eyes  on  it 
was  under  sarcum stances  kalkerlated  to  make  a  man  re- 
member it,  I  tell  ye ;  for  I  was  hard  pressed  by  a  pack  of 
redskins,  and  me  and  a  comrade  held  our  own  agin  'em  for 
two  days  and  two  nights,  and  we  put  our  marks  onto  the 
biggest  part  of  them  in  a  way  the  Lord  will  remember  in 
the  Jedgment,  for  they  did  awful  murder  here ;  and  I  sunk 
in  the  water  there,  off  that  p'infc,  as  handsome  a  body  as 
the  Lord  of  Life  ever  made,  if  her  skin  was  red  and  her 
father  the  chief  of  the  thievin'  Hurons.  And  as  for  the 
name,  it  is  a  name  which  the  Indians  gin  it,  arter  what  hap- 
pened here  in  the  scrimmage  I've  told  ye  of;  for  they  say, 


118  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  there  be  white  men  who  swear  to  the  same,  that  in  the 
month  of  July,  on  the  twenty -fifth  day,  jest  afore  dawn,  a 
white  figger  can  be  seen  comin'  up  out  of  the  water,  and 
that  it  walks  over  to  this  beach  and  then  across  to  where 
yon  stream  comes  in,  through  the  alders  there,  and  then 
floats  back  abreast  the  p'int  and  sinks  out  of  sight;  and 
they  call  it  the  '  Lake  of  the  Lovely  Spirit.'  And  I  can  well 
believe  the  spirit  is  lovely ;  for  she  was  lovely  in  life,  and  I 
don't  see  why  dyin'  should  mar  the  beauty  of  the  Lord's 
cretur's.  Yis,  it  sartinly  is  a  handsome  lake,  and  its  shores 
are  thick  with  mem'ries  to  me.  And  right  on  this  very 
beach,  aye,  jest  here  where  we  stand,  I  had  a  tussle  with 
half  a  dozen  redskins  which  came  near  being  my  last,  and 
a  life  was  given  for  mine,  and  another  met  the  death  that 
was  meant  for  me,  here.  But  I  squared  accounts  with  the 
last  of  the  scamps  thirty  year  ago,  and  that's  sartinly  con- 
solin'  to  one  who  remembers,  as  I  do,  the  cruelty  of  the 
devils,  and  how  they  did  murder  without  cause  and  agin 
reason." 

"  Well,"  Herbert  responded,  "  the  lake  is  certainly  beauti- 
ful and  appropriately  named,  too,  if  what  men  say  occurs 
here,  and  I  will  make  you  tell  me  the  history  of  your  fight 
on  this  lake  fifty  years  ago,  some  day,  and  all  about  the 
death  of  the  beautiful  Indian  girl,  if  the  memory  is  not  un- 
pleasant for  you  to  recall.  But  now  I  am  hungry  and  feel 
as  if  the  sooner  we  get»a  fire  started  and  some  meat  cook- 
ing the  better  it  will  be  for  my  feelings." 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly,"  rejoined  the  Trapper  promptly,  "  but 
not  here  lad.    Toss  your  pack  into  the  canoe  and  I  will  pad- 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  119 

die  yer  over  there  to  where  yon  stream  comes  in  through 
the  balsam  grove,  and  we'll  find  a  camp  all  ready  for  us 
there  onless  the  snows  has  broken  down  the  lodge  poles,  or 
some  onlarnt  city  man  has  stolen  the  bark  off  the  roof  for 
kindlin's." 

In  a  few  moments  the  two  were  in  the  canoe  which  the 
Old  Trapper  was  urging  with  an  easy  stroke  across  the 
glassy  surface  of  the  unruffled  water,  and  shortly  the  canoe 
was  run  ashore  in  the  green  grass  at  the  mouth  of  the  lit- 
tle rivulet  which  with  a  faint  musical  gurgle  flowed  through 
the  balsam  grove  under  the  alders  into  the  lake. 

"  There,  Henry,"  exclaimed  the  old  man,  as  he  stepped 
ashore  and  cast  his  gaze  around  him,  u  This  looks  home- 
like for  sartin.  Many  be  the  days  and  many  be  the  nights 
I  have  lodged  here,  both  in  winter  and  summer,  and  I  have 
never  seed  the  time  when  the  mouth  of  this  little  brook 
didn't  give  me  fish,  or  the  shores  of  this  lake  didn't  keep 
me  in  ven'son.  And  as  for  ducks,  and  geese,  and  wild  fowl 
in  their  season,  Lord-a-massy,  Henry,  the  water  used  to  be 
black  with  'emj  and  I've  taken  the  head  of  many  a  duck 
off  with  my  bullets,  sittin'  right  here  in  the  door  of  the 
lodge ;  and  if  ye  noted  the  ledge  back  of  here  as  I  paddled 
ye  in,  ye  saw  the  home  of  more  panthers  than  any  other 
spot  in  the  wilderness.  Many  a  night  have  I  laid  here  in 
my  lodge  and  heered  their  cries  and  screams  as  they  scrim- 
maged with  each  other,  or  held  their  ugly  feasting  over  the 
body  of  a  buck.  Yis,"  continued  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he 
lighted  a  match  and  applied  it  to  a  bunch  of  dried  twigs  he 
had  piled  in  the  fire-place,  "  I  have  kindled  my  fires  here 


120  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

by  flint  and  steel  instead  of  lucifer  matches,  and  started  a 
blaze  under  different  sarcumstances  than  we  be  in  to-day. 
Come,  Henry,  do  ye  fetch  some  water  from  the  brook  and  I 
warrant  ye  will  find  it  cold  as  the  iced  drinks  of  the  settle- 
ments, and  we  will  have  the  pot  bilin'  and  the  steak  cookin' 
in  no  time." 

Both  men  now  applied  themselves  to  their  respective 
tasks  and  in  a  brief  space  of  time  they  were  sittin'  cross- 
legged  on  the  ground  with  a  bark  between  them  covered 
with  food  smoking  hot.  Without  delay  Herbert  addressed 
himself  to  the  eating  with  the  quick,  earnest  motions  of 
hand  and  teeth,  of  a  man  who  is  desperately  hungry  and  in 
the  enjoyment  of  perfect  health. 

The  Old  Trapper  sat  looking  at  his  young  companion  a 
moment  with  a  look  of  broad,  but  benevolent  humor  on  his 
wrinkled  features,  and  then  picking  up  a  corn  cake  he 
placed  a  bit  of  the  brown  luxury  leisurely  in  his  mouth  and 
said :  — 

"  It  does  my  old  jaws  good,  Henry,  to  see  ye  so  familiar 
and  off  hand  like  with  the  victals.  A  parson  I  guided  last 
summer  used  to  think  it  ongrateful  not  to  say  grace  afore 
he  fetched  a  morsel,  and  he  lived  up  to  his  idees  of  right 
and  wrong,  for  sartin,  for  he  never  failed  to  say  grace  over 
his  plate  afore  he  tasted  it ;  but  he  had  a  powerful  strong 
hold  on  language,  and  I  used  to  conceit  many  a  time  that 
he  overdid  the  thing  a  leetle.  Ye  see,  Henry,"  said  the  Old 
Trapper  in  a  low,  confidential  tone,  as  if  half  talking  to 
himself,  "the  man  was  chock  full  of  words,  and  gave  tongue 
like  a  young  hound  on  his  fust  track,  and  he  sort  of  spilled 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  121 

over  because  he  was  so  full  of  'em.  The  least  chance  to 
say  something  religious  joggled  him,  and  I  do  think  I've 
heerd  the  man  say  his  prayers  so  long  over  his  plate  that 
his  victals  actally  cooled  before  he  got  to  'em,  and  that's 
what  I  call  darned  foolishness,  put  it  any  way  ye  mind  to. 

Now,  Henry,  I  never  cook  a  steak  or  bile  a  tater  or  brown 
a  flapjack  that  I  don't  sort  of  have  a  pleasant  feelin'  inardly 
to  the  Lord  for  his  marcy  to  me ;  and  sartiu,  1  never  sot  my 
teeth  into  the  crumpy  edge  of  a  brown  corn  cake  like  this 
and  didn't  feel  how  pleasant  and  cheerful  a  thing  it  is  to 
live ;  for  a  cake  like  this  is  toothsome  eatin',  and  if  the 
meal  isn't  too  fine,  there  are  chunks  of  the  karnals  lyin' 
around  in  it  that  the  teeth  git  into,  and  the  tongue  intar- 
prets  the  real  vartue  of  the  corn,  in  a  way  that  sartinly 
ought  to  make  a  man  grateful  for  the  faculties  the  Lord  has 
gin  him,  and  the  sweet  growths  of  natur.' 

But  as  for  a  man  stoppin'  to  ontangle  a  string  of  pious 
words  when  his  stomach  is  empty,  and  he  feels  like  a  cel- 
lar with  no  house  over  it,  and  the  steam  of  the  hot  victals 
is  strong  in  his  nostrils,  why,  Henry,  I  must  say  that  it 
seems  to  me  to  be  agin  natur'  and  reason.  My  idee  is  that 
the  Lord  knows  all  about  our  feelin's  and  can  see  the  grace 
of  the  man's  heart  goin'  up,  as  the  victals  go  down,  and 
that  he  loves  to  see  us  dip  in  hearty-like,  and  as  if  we  en- 
joyed the  smell  and  taste  of  the  things  He  has  made  to 
grow  for  us ;  and  if  words  must  be  said,  I  conceit  that  they 
should  be  said  arter  the  man  is  full,  and  is  ready  to  sit  back 
and  feel  religious-like  ;  but  as  to  wastin'  time  in  lay  in'  hold 
of  the  Lord's  marcies  when  they  are  all  smokin'  hot  and 


122  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

afore  ye,  and  the  'wind  is  coolin'  'em,  I  don't  conceit  that 
the  Lord  expects  any  such  foolishness  from  men  of  sense 
and  jedgment." 

So  the  two  men  sat  eating  and  talking  in  the  wise,  hu- 
morous fashion  of  American  back-woodsmen,  until  thoy  jad 
satisfied  the  demands  of  nature.  They  then  washed  the 
dishes,  and  having  re-packed  the  basket  restored  it  to  the 
"canoe,  and  stood  one  at  either  end  of  it  ready  to  launch  it 
forth  on  the  level  water  and  resume  their  journey.  This 
they  did  in  a  moment,  and  were  soon  on  the  bosom  of  the 
lake,  whose  unruffled  surface  reflected  like  a  perfect  mirror 
the  blue  sky  and  white  clouds  above,  and  the  autumnal 
glories  of  the  hills  on  either  side. 

"  I  tell  ye  for  sartin,  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he 
lifted  his  paddle  from  the  bottom  of  the  canoe,  and  passed 
it  with  the  easy  motion  of  long  habit  into  the  water,  "I  tell 
ye,  for  sartin,  Henry,  that  we  shall  have  some  fun  afore  we 
git  through  this  trip ;  I  feel  the  comin'  of  it  in  my  bones  as 
a  hound  gits  the  fust  stray  whiffs  of  the  true  scent  in  his 
nose,  and  opens  on  it  musical-like.  I'm  mighty  glad  ye  are 
with  me  and  can  stay  in,  this  year  till  the  snow  drives  ye 
out,  and  later,  too,  if  ye  have  a  mind,  for  I  must  confess 
that  I  take  to  ye  mightily,  and  the  trail  will  be  lonely  and 
the  old  lodge  empty-like,  when  ye  are  gone.  Now,  I  nave 
an  idee  that  we  had  best  swing  across  to  the  Saranacs  and 
see  what's  goin'  on  there,  for  ye  remember  we  heerd  them 
talkin'  in  the  camp  we  ambushed  on  the  Cranberry  waters, 
of  a  boat  race  that  the  city  folks  was  gittin'  up  on  the  Sar- 
anacs.   Ye  see,  Henry,  ye  pull  a  mighty  clean  stroke  and  a 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  123 

strong  one  too  j  and  though  I  have  held  the  paddle  back  of 
a  good  many  men  who  was  handy  with  the  ash,  I  never  felt 
a  boat  git  away  from  under  me  as  fast  as  ye  make  it  when 
ye  fairly  put  your  strength  onto  the  blades,  and  I  would 
give  the  best  furred  beaver's  hide  I  shall  trap  this  winter 
to  see  ye  cut  out  a  stroke  for  two  miles  and  return,  with 
them  cocky  Saranac  chaps;  for  they  think  they  can  out- 
shoot  and  outrow  all  creation,  and  it  would  be  doin'  the 
Lord's  sarvice  to  take  a  leetle  of  their  foolishness  out  of 
'em,  as  I  feel  ye  can  do ;  and  if  they  would  only  let  me  in, 
too,  I  tell  ye,  Henry,  twixt  you  at  the  oars  and  me  at  the 
paddle  we'd  e'enamost  drive  the  bottom-board  out  of  the 
boat  and  show  'em  what  an  old  man  and  a  young  one  used 
to  the  woods,  when  they  jine  works,  can  do,"  and  the  old 
Trapper  gave  a  flourish  with  his  paddle,  and  passed  it  into 
the  water  with  an  energy  that  fairly  lifted  the  canoe  half 
off  the  water. 

"Well,"  rejoined  Herbert,  I  like  your  plan,  and  we  will 
push  through  as  you  say,  for  one  spot  is  as  good  as  another 
to  me,  and  I  would  like  to  see  the  races  and  take  a  hand  in 
them,  too,  if  you  wished ;  but  I  would  like  to  see  a  beaver 
lodge  before  we  go  out,  and  you  know  you  said  I  could  see 
one  almost  any  day." 

"Sartin,  sartin,  I  did,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "and  ye 
shall  see  one  inside  of  thirty  minits  if  the  vagabonds  have 
done  their  summer  wanderin'  and  got  back  to  their  homes ; 
for  there's  a  lettle  pond  here,  away  to  the  right  of  the  carry, 
twixt  this  and  Mud  Lake,  from  which  I  have  taken  many  a 
hide,  and  I  never  skeerd  one  of  'em  by  careless  trappiu' 


124  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

and  so  they  keep  comin'  back  every  year,  as  they  will  if  ye 
don't  distarb  them  by  any  foolishness,  and  I  warrant  a  dozen 
of  the  brown  backed  rogues  are  playin'  in  the  water  this 
very  minit.  Aye,  here  we  be  at  the  carry,  and  we  will 
leave  the  canoe  and  see  if  we  can  ambush  the  pond." 

A  swift  walk  of  twenty  minutes  brought  the  Trapper  and 
his  companion  to  a  point  where  the  old  man  paused,  and 
turning  to  his  comrade,  he  said  in  a  whisper :  — 

"  There,  Henry,  jest  over  that  pine  knoll  is  a  bit  of  mash 
with  a  pond  in  the  center  of  it,  and  the  grass  grows  tall, 
but  there's  not  a  bush  on  the  whole  lot,  and  we  must  crawl 
for  it;  and  if  there's  any  way  ye  can  make  yourself  flatter 
than  another,  I  sartinly  advise  ye  to  try  it,  and  if  ye  break 
a  stick  as  big  as  the  stem  of  ye  pipe,  Henry,  ye  will  see 
no  beaver  to-day,  for  they  be  mighty  timerous  animils,  and 
their  ears  and  eyes  are  as  open  as  a  Huron's  in  the  midst 
of  an  ambushment.  So  be  keerful,  lad,  and  if  yer  gifts  be 
as  good  at  crawlin'  as  they  be  at  shootin',  ye  shall  be  lookin' 
into  the  eyes  of  a  beaver  within  forty  feet  of  ye  inside  of 
ten  minits.  Now  down  to  the  arth,  Henry,  for  we  sartinly 
have  got  to  snake  it." 

So  saying  the  Old  Trapper  sank  to  the  earth,  and  being 
followed  in  the  action  by  his  companion,  the  two  began  to 
work  their  way  noiselessly  over  the  knoll  and  into  the  tall 
grass  of  the  meadow. 

It  would  have  been  an  interesting  spectacle  to  one  un- 
accustomed to  exhibitions  of  woodcraft,  to  have  stood  on 
that  knoll  and  have  seen  with  what  patience  and  skill  the 
two  men  woxked  their  way  onward  through  the  tall  grass 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  125 

toward  the  pond.  Not  a  twig  snapped,  not  a  rustle  came 
from  the  withered  grass,  and  scarce  a  movement  of  the 
pendent  blades  revealed  that  two  human  bodies  were  pass- 
ing onward  toward  the  edge  of  the  pond.  Two-thirds  the 
distance  had  been  covered,  when  the  Old  Trapper  paused  in 
his  course  and  noiselessly  passing  his  hand  backward  along 
his  side  beckoned  with  his  fingers  for  his  companion,  who 
had  been  trailing  in  his  wake,  to  move  up  to  his  right.  This 
he  did,  and  the  two  men  lay  stretched  side  by  side,  motion- 
less as  logs,  in  the  tall  grass.  The  Trapper  put  his  lips  to 
the  ear  of  his  companion,  and  breathed,  rather  than  whis- 
pered into  it :  — 

"  Yis,  Henry,  ye  are  a  nateral  woodsman,  for  sartin,  and 
ye  can  crawl  like  a  Huron,  and  I  rejice  in  yer  gifts.  Ye 
remind  me  of  a  lad  I  had  as  a  comrade  in  the  old  war,  and 
a  truer  hearted  boy,  though  a  redskin,  never  drove  a  bullet 
into  a  grooved  barrel.  Many  a  time  has  he  and  me  crawled 
our  way  out  of  danger  when  the  inimy  was  round  us  on  all 
sides,  and  athirst  for  our  blood :  but  the  boy  himself  couldn't 
have  fetched  this  trail  stiller  than  ye  have  done.  By  the 
Lord,  Henry,  I  wish  we  had  men  and  not  beavers  to  crawl 
onto,  for  this  sort  of  business  stirs  memory  and  blood  both 
in  me,  and  my  hand  has  actally  slid  toward  my  knife  han- 
dle more  than  once  sence  I  started,  as  if  there  was  a  inimy 
somewhere,  lyin'  close  in  the  grass,  when  I  know  a  human 
bein'  isn't  within  forty  mile  of  us ;  and  there's  nothiu'  more 
harmful  than  innocent  beaver  in  front.  Now,  Henry,  let 
your  very  breath  go  down  into  the  sod,  for  the  edge  of  the 
pond  isn't  fifty  feet  away." 


126  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

To  these  whispered  reflections  the  young  man  made  no 
reply  save  with  his  eyes,  and  in  an  instant  the  two  bodies 
slowly,  and  without  noise,  began  to  move  on  through  the 
grass. 

Five  minutes  may  have  passed  when  two  human  heads 
moved  slowly  and  partially  out  of  the  grass  that  grew  with 
rank  luxuriance  on  the  edge  of  the  pond,  and  hung  pen- 
dant over  and  drooped  its  points  into  the  water.  Several 
beavers  were  swimming  hither  and  thither  in  the  water, 
while  several  others  were  busily  engaged  in  mending  the 
dome  of  their  home. 

The  Old  Trapper  put  his  lips  to  the  ear  of  his  companion 
again,  and  said,  "  Ye  see  the  activity  of  the  creturs,  Henry, 
and  how  they  work  wisely  accordin'  to  the  sense  the  Crea- 
tor has  given  'em.  Do  ye  see  the  old  fellow  with  the  white 
patches  on  his  sides  and  the  light  spot  atween  his  ears.  If 
he  would  only  turn  round,  ye  would  see  he  had  no  tail,  for 
he  left  it  in  my  trap  two  years  ago,  and  how  he  steers  him- 
self in  swimmin'  the  Lord  only  knows.  I  would  give  the 
best  horn  of  powder  in  the  cabin  to  see  him  try  to  circle 
this  pond  once.  I  doubt,  lad,  if  there  be  another  man  in 
the  wood  that  could  fetch  himself  through  the  grass  to  the 
edge  of  this  pond,  and  not  distarb  the  watchful  creturs.  I 
would  like  to  see  the  man  that  could  do  it,  for  sartin.  Jest 
stay  where  ye  are,  Henry,  while  I  move  a  foot  or  two  to  the 
left  to  git  a  glimpse  back  of  the  lodge." 

So  saying,  the  Old  Trapper  rolled  slowly  over  till  his  back 
was  turned  to  his  companion.  He  rolled  over,  but  moved 
not  an  inch  beyond.    His  face  suddenly  sharpened  with  ex- 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  127 

citement,  his  nostrils  dilated,  and  his  hand  sought  the  han- 
dle of  his  knife  in  earnest,  for  there,  not  three  feet  from 
his  face,  was  the  face  of  another  man,  and  a  pair  of 

BRIGHT  EYES  WERE  GAZING  FIXEDLY  INTO  HIS  I 


CHAPTER  II. 
AN  ANIMATED  BUSH. 

"  Dressed  in  living  green."  —  Watts. 

"  Thou  comest  in  such  a  questionable  shape 
That  I  will  speak  to  thee."  —  Shakespeare. 

A  FLASH  of  lightning  is  not  quicker  than  was  the  mo- 
tion with  which  the  Old  Trapper  sprang  to  his  feet, 
knife  in  hand,  and,  as  he  struck  the  perpendicular,  he  ex- 
claimed: "Henry,  lad,  up  with  ye,  and  set  yer  eye  into  the 
grass  here  and  see  as  fine  an  ambushment  as  a  Huron  ever 
made.  Look  at  his  eyes,  boy,  and  tell  me  if  ye  can  the 
name  of  the  cretur',  and  what  be  the  purpose  of  his  devil- 
ments." 

The  motion  of  the  Trapper  was  not  quicker  than  that  of 
his  companion,  as  he  rose  from  the  grass  to  the  old  man's 
side ;  and  certainly  no  astonishment  could  be  greater  than 
his,  as  following  the  direction  of  the  old  man's  finger,  he 
saw  the  gleam  of  eyes  gazing,  as  it  were,  from  the  very 
roots  of  the  marsh-grass  into  his  face. 

For  a  minute  the  -two  stood  gazing  downward  into  the 
grass  where  lay  the  body  of  the  man,  into  whose  very  reach 
they  had  crept  without  the  least  suspicion  of  his  presence. 
The  countenance  of  Herbert  showed  only  blank  astonish- 
ment and  surprise  too  great  for  speech,  with  such  a  startled 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  129 

expression  as  nature  will  bring  to  the  face  of  one  unac- 
customed to  such  a  sudden  summons  as  the  cry  of  his  com- 
panion had  been  to  him.  The  look  of  the  Trapper's  face 
showed  neither  astonishment  nor  alarm.  If,  on  the  instant 
of  discovery,  he  had  felt  either,  its  expression  had  passed 
from  his  countenance,  and  in  its  place  there  had  come  to 
his  features  the  look  of  profound  curiosity.  He  was  evi- 
dently studying,  with  the  full  force  of  his  faculties,  the  trick 
or  arrangement  by  which  the  man,  whose  eyes  alone  were 
visible,  had  been  able  to  so  conceal  himself  that  even  by 
those  who  were  then  looking  downward  upon  him,  not  a 
square  inch  of  his  garments  could  be  seen.  In  a  moment 
the  Old  Trapper  opened  his  mouth  and  began  to  laugh  in 
his  silent  but  hearty  fashion.  For  several  seconds  he  in- 
dulged himself  in  his  peculiar,  self-satisfying  merriment, 
and  then,  turning  to  his  companion,  he  exclaimed  :  — 

"  By  the  Lord,  Henry,  the  cretur',  whoever  he  be,  has  the 
gift  of  concealment,  for  sartin;  and  he  has  larnt  a  man, 
whose  head  has  whitened  on  the  trail,  a  trick  the  Hurons 
never  dreamed  of ;  and  it  might  well  take  the  conceit  out 
of  me  if  age  had  not  larnt  me  the  wisdom  to  know  my 
ignorance.  For  here  be  I,  a  man  who  has  never  lived  in 
the  settlements,  but  lived  accordin'  to  my  gifts  in  the  woods, 
and  has  seen  a  thousand  ambushments,  and  knows  all  the 
tricks  and  devilments  of  the  redskins,  and  the  cretur'  at 
our  feet  here  has  larnt  me  a  lesson  in  hidin'  whose  vartue 
sets  my  eyes  swimmin'.  See,  Henry,  the  cunnin'  of  the 
cretur'.  Bless  me,  boy,  if  he  hasn't  woven  the  very  grass 
into  his  breeches ;  aye,  and  into  his  shirt,  and  the  hair  of 


130  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

his  head,  too ;  ontil  the  very  mash  is  not  greener  nor  more 
like  the  arth  than  he.  It's  marvelous  that  a  human  bein' 
could  so  convart  himself  into  a  bog,  that  a  man  with  my 
gifts  and  my  trainin'  might  e'enamost  have  crawled  over 
him  and  not  felt  the  shape  and  warmin'  of  his  body." 

"  Come,  friend,"  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  as  he  drew  back 
a  step  and  motioned  toward  the  man  at  his  feet,  with  a 
hand  that  still  kept  its  hold  on  the  knife,  "  Come,  friend  or 
inimy,  whichever  ye  be,  suppose  ye  hist  yerself  from  the 
bog  and  show  yerself  in  yer  nateral  form,  as  the  Lord  made 
ye,  that  we  may  see  what  sort  of  an  animil  ye  be  that  has 
crawled  to  the  edge  of  this  pond  with  the  whole  marsh  on 
yer  back,  and  deceived  the  eyes  of  one  born  in  the  woods." 

As  the  Old  Trapper  uttered  this  exclamation,  the  grass 
upon  which  they  were  gazing,  with  eyes  that  lost  not  a  mo- 
tion, became  agitated.  A  quiver  ran  through  a  section  of 
the  turf  at  their  feet,  and  then  the  body  of  a  man,  covered 
from  head  to  foot  with  grass  and  bits  of  sod,  deftly  woven 
together  in  the  semblance  of  a  mantle,  rose  into  the  air  and 
stood  upright  before  them ;  but  the  strange  covering  with 
which  he  had  clothed  himself  still  clung  to  his  garments,  so 
that  it  was  impossible  to  discover  the  size  and  shape  of  the 
man,  or  what  might  be  his  actual  appearance  when  entirely 
rid  of  his  strange  metamorphosis.  But  it  was  plainly  seen 
by  the  two  men  who  stood  staring  at  the  astonishing  figure 
before  them,  that  the  man  was  of  extraordinary  height,  and 
that  his  arms,  at  least,  were  unusually  long  j  but  beyond 
this,  little  could  be  guessed  of  his  proportions  or  real  ap- 
pearance. 


HE  SHOOK    HIMSELF."    Page  131. 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  131 

"  And  dow,  friend,"  continued  the  Trapper,  as  he  stood 
eying  the  wonderful  figure  before  him,  "  if  the  grass  isn't 
nat'ral  to  ye,  and  hasn't  growed  into  yer  skin  so  it  would 
hurt  ye  to  part  with  yer  heathenish  raiment,  and  especially 
if  ye  have  got  any  breeches  on,  and  yer  ribs  are  kivered 
with  a  waistcoat,  suppose  for  our  knowledge  and  yer  own 
comfort,  ye  sort  of  shake  yerself  free  from  what  don't  nat'- 
rally  belong  to  ye,  and  show  yerself  to  us  jest  as  ye  was 
afore  ye  stole  the  kiverin  of  the  arth  to  sarve  ye  in  yer 
cunnin',  —  that  the  boy  here,  and  me,  may  know  what  sort 
of  a  man  ye  be;  for  though  I  have  lived  in  the  woods  sence 
I  was  born,  and  have  consorted  with  whites  and  redskins 
alike,  nigh  on  to  eighty  year,  and  have  seen  all  the  tricks 
and  devilments  of  Injin  cunnin',  yit  I  be  ready  to  confess  I 
never  seed  a  man  look  as  ye  do,  or  onkivered,  afore  to-day, 
sech  an  ambushment  as  ye  made  for  the  beavers  here  on 
the  edge  of  this  pond.  So  shake  yerself  out  of  yer  kiverin 
and  show  us  yer  nat'ral  figur,  or  I  shall  sartinly  lay  hold  of 
ye  and  see  what's  the  color  of  yer  hide  myself." 

In  obedience  to  this  exhortation  of  the  Trapper,  the 
strange  being,  who  had  not  yet  opened  his  mouth,  but  had 
remained  staring  at  the  two  in  front  of  him,  began  to 
quiver  from  head  to  foot.  He  shook  himself  as  a  dog 
shakes  himself  from  extremity  to  extremity ;  the  vibra- 
tions began  at  his  head,  from  which,  as  the  agitations  grew, 
the  grass  spires  and  bits  of  sod  began  to  fall  in  a  shower, 
and  as  the  motion  worked  its  way  down  the  body  on  its 
way  to  his  feet,  so  did  the  strange  covering  fall  away  from 
him,  until  with  a  kick  and  flourish  of  his  feet  the  last  ad- 


132  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

hering  tufts  and  pieces  of  bogs  and  patches  of  swamp- 
moss  flew  from  his  limbs,  and  a  creature  of  astonishing 
height,  clothed  in  buckskin  from  toe  to  neck,  stood  forth  in 
plain  view. 

As  the  strange  process  of  freeing  himself  from  his  un- 
natural, but  cunningly  wrought  covering,  had  gone  on,  and 
while  the  agitation  was  at  its  height,  and  the  air  around 
the  man  was  literally  full  of  the  grass  and  sods  and  moss 
he  was  shaking  from  himself,  the  Old  Trapper  yielded  to 
the  sense  of  the  humorous  that  was  natural  to  him,  and 
beginning  with  a  smile  and  a  twinkle  of  the  eyes,  the  ex- 
pression of  mirthfulness  deepened  and  spread  until  it  pos- 
sessed his  broad  face  and  convulsed  his  stalwart  frame. 
He  drove  his  knife  into  its  sheath,  and  putting  his  hands  on 
his  knees  laughed  a  laugh  that  brimmed  his  eyes  with  irre- 
pressible tears.  In  this  laughter  —  from  the  very  conta- 
giousness of  it  perhaps  —  his  companion  joined,  and  had 
there  been  a  spectator  to  the  scene,  he  would  have  per- 
ceived the  strange  spectacle  of  two  men,  standing  on  a 
marsh,  on  the  edge  of  a  beaver  pond,  bent  and  swaying 
with  mirth,  while  in  front  of  them  stood  a  man,  of  immense 
height  and  length  of  limb,  but  unusually  lank  in  his  pro- 
portions, and  with  a  countenance  that  moved  not  a  line, 
nor  changed  a  shade  in  its  look  of  simple  and  almost  solemn 
gravity. 

"  By  the  Lord,  Henry,"  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  "  if  the 
man  isn't  made  up  of  grass  and  roots  and  yarbs !  He  is 
nothin'  more  nor  less  than  a  section  of  the  mash  on  legs, 
and  where  there's  depth  of  sile  enough  in  him  to  support 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  133 

scch  a  crop  is  rnoro  than  I  can  see,  for  he  isn't  thicker  than 
a  rived  shingle,  and  another  shake  would  send  him  into 
etarnity."  And  the  Old  Trapper  fairly  surrendered  himself 
to  the  merriment  of  his  mood,  and  laughed  and  roared 
until  the  woods  that  bordered  the  marsh  rang  hollow  to  the 
sound. 

Indeed,  there  was  much  in  the  appearance  of  the  man, 
whoever  or  whatever  he  might  be,  in  front  of  them,  to  pro- 
voke the  mirth  to  which  Herbert  and  the  Trapper  were  so 
freely  surrendering  themselves,  especially  when  taken  in 
connection  with  the  attendant  circumstances  of  the  scene. 
In  height  he  was  at  least  six  feet  and  a  half,  but  of  such 
spare  and  extremely  slim  proportions  that  he  appeared  of 
even  greater  height.  As  for  flesh,  it  could  not  with  truth 
be  said  that  ho  had  much  of  any  on  him,  for  he  seemed  to 
bo  altogether  made  up  of  bones,  skin,  and  sinews.  His  legs 
were  of  extraordinary  length,  even  as  contrasted  with  his 
immense  height,  and  his  arms  fairly  matched  his  legs.  His 
hands  were  flat,  with  long,  slim  fingers  and  enormous  joints 
and  knuckles.  His  chest  was  narrow  and  his  shoulders 
decidedly  stooping.  His  face  was  beardless,  and  strange  to 
say,  well  and  regularly  formed  in  its  features.  His  mouth 
was  rather  small,  chin  pleasantly  rounded,  his  eyes  a  light 
grey  in  color,  his  head  fairly  shaped  and  covered  scantily 
with  fine,  light-colored  hair.  On  his  upper  lip  was  a 
downy  growth,  scarcely  discernible  against  the  blonde  skin 
that  seemed  incapable  of  taking  tan  or  of  receiving  those 
characteristic  lines  which  life  and  exposure  bring  to  the 
average  countenance.    The  dominant  expression  of  his  faco 


134  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

—  and  it  spread  its  soft  mildness  over  every  feature,  —  was 
a  look  of  profound  simplicity  —  the  simplicity  of  one  utter- 
ly guileless,  and  whose  innocence  is  the  result  of  passions 
unexcited,  and  possibly  of  capacity  too  limited  to  receive 
the  temptations  and  seductions  which  are  supposed  to  assail 
and  be  received  by  the  majority  of  mankind.  Whether  it 
was  the  normal  expression,  a  natural  constituent  of  the 
youth's  countenance  —  for  he  could  not  have  seen  thirty 
years  —  or  whether  it  was  because  he  did  not  understand, 
and  was  pained  at  the  somewhat  boisterous  mirth  of  the 
two  men  in  front  of  him,  was  uncertain  j  but  over  his  face, 
especially  in  the  unsteady  light  of  his  eyes  and  around  the 
corners  of  his  mouth,  was  visible  the  slightest  possible  ex- 
pression of  plaintive  deprecation,  as  if  he  suffered  in  being 
laughed  at,  and  yet  knew  not  why  he  was  the  object  of 
their  mirth,  and  had  not  the  strength  of  self-assertion  to 
resent  it,  even  if  he  did  know.  It  was  the  hurt,  deprecat- 
ing look  of  a  loving  animal,  intelligent  enough  to  receive 
the  pain  inflicted  by  the  ridicule,  but  unable  or  unwilling  to 
defend  itself  from  the  infliction. 

The  Old  Trapper  perceived  what  seemed  to  be  passing  in 
the  mind  of  the  singular  being  in  front  of  him;  he  checked 
his  laughter  and  his  face  settled  into  its  accustomed  grav- 
ity. He  even  made  a  motion  that  had  in  it  the  grave 
significance  of  an  apology,  and,  after  gazing  closely  but 
respectfully  at  him  for  a  moment  said,  in  the  direct  fashion 
of  a  hunter's  speech,  and  in  a  tone  that  had  in  it  the  vibra- 
tion of  astonishment,  "  Who  be  ye  ? " 

For  a  moment  the  man  made  no  reply,  but  stood  looking 


THE   MAN  TIIAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  135 

first  at  the  one  and  then  at  the  other.  At  last  his  eyes 
fixed  themselves  mildly  but  steadily  upon  the  honest  "coun- 
tenance of  the  Trapper  and  he  replied :  — 

"I  BE  THE  MAN  WHO  DON'T  KNOW  MUCH." 

"  Well,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  ye  are  singularly  named 
for  sartin,  and  I  dare  say  honestly,  but  ye  are  the  fust  man 
I've  ever  met  on  the  arth,  whether  he  was  born  in  the 
woods  or  the  settlements,  that  would  own  up  to  his  lackins, 
or  confess  to  his  foolishness.  And  as  to  yer  not  knowin' 
much  ye  sartinly  know  enough  to  ambush  a  beaver  pond 
when  the  water  is  alive  with  the  rogues,  and  the  top  of 
their  lodge  sentinelled  by  the  father  of  the  tribe,  who  larnt 
the  folly  of  carelessness  in  a  way  a  beaver  isn't  apt  to  forgit, 
when  he  left  his  tail  in  my  trap  two  year  agone  j  and  that's 
givin'  ye  credit  for  larnin'  that  few  men  in  the  woods  have 
to-day,  not  to  speak  of  the  parsons  and  other  great  men  of 
the  settlements,  who  could  no  more  fetch  a  trail  across  this 
mash  to  the  edge  of  this  pond  here  and  not  skeer  the  crit- 
ters than  they  could  stop  a  wild  pigeon  in  its  flight  with  a 
single  bullet,  with  all  the  larnin'  of  their  books  to-  help 
them.  And  let  me  tell  ye,  lad,  for  it  may  comfort  ye  if  ye 
are  short  of  larnin'  and  feel  the  lack  of  it  powerful-like, 
there  isn't  another  man  twixt  the  Horicon  and  the  great 
plains,  that  could  so  sink  his  body  into  this  mash  and  kiver 
it  with  grasses  that  old  John  Norton,  when  fetchin'  an  on- 
sartin'  ambushment,  would  crawl  within  reach  of  his  knife, 
if  he  was  hostile,  and  lie  within  a  yard  of  him  for  three 
minutes  and  not  know  of  his  presence.  And  was  it  not  for 
the  cunnin'  of  yer  trick  and  the  fact  that  years  has  larut 


136  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

me  that  the  gifts  and  the  larnin'  of  mortal  man  is  imparfect, 
I  should  be  kivered  with  shame  at  the  thought  that  I  actally 
rolled  over  agin  ye  afore  I  knowed  the  grass  within  reach 
of  my  arm  was  inhabited.  So,  comfort  yerself,  lad,  for  ye 
are  sartinly  gifted  as  few  be  in  crawlin'  and  hidin',  for  ye 
have  done  what  was  never  done  afore  by  white  or  redskin, 
in  peace  or  war,  sence  my  eyes  knowed  the  trail,  or  my 
nose  larnt  the  difference  twixt  the  smell  of  dead  grass  and 
the  body  of  a  mortal.  And  why  are  ye  here,  lad,  and  where 
are  ye  bound  ? " 

But  the  youth  made  no  reply,  but  stood  and  stared  at  the 
old  man,  with  mouth  half  open  and  eyes  filled  with  sur- 
prise. At  last,  without  answering  the  interrogation  of  the 
Trapper,  he  said  :  — 

"  Be  you  John  Norton,  the  Trapper !  I've  heard  of  you 
since  I  was  a  boy  on  the  farm,  by  the  great  sea,  aud  men 
told  great  tales  of  you,  and  one  man  said  you  saved  his  life 
way  off  in  the  West,  where  the  land  is  all  flat  and  the  In- 
dians are  thick  as  the  grass.  ADd  partly  because  they 
laughed  at  me  at  home  after  mother  died,  and  partly  be- 
cause I  wanted  to  find  you  and  live  with  you,  I  ran  away 
and  came  to  the  woods  here,  where  I've  been  these  twelve 
years  trying  to  find  you.  And  now  I  have  found  you,  and 
you  said  I  did  well  in  crawling  onto  the  beaver  here,  I'm 
so  happy."  And  the  poor  fellow  paused  as  if  overcome 
with  very  delight.  And  then  he  looked  wistfully  at  the  old 
Trapper,  as  if  he  would  ask  a  favor,  which  he  feared  would 
not  be  granted,  took  a  half  step  toward  him  and  said 
timidly,  "John  Norton!  Please,  may  I  take  one  of  your 
bauds  ?" 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  137 

"  Lord  bless  ye  lad,  of  course  ye  may.  And  ye  needn't 
think  its  any  great  honor  cither,  and  if  I  can  do  yo  any 
good,  or  give  yo  a  lift  in  any  way,  I  will  do  it  for  sartin, 
and  there's  my  hand  on  it,"  and  tho  Trapper  stretched  out 
his  broad  palm  to  tho  youth,  who  took  it  in  one  of  his  long 
bony  hands  and  clasped  his  lingers  round  it  with  a  close- 
ness of  grip  that  would  have  crowded  tho  bones  out  of 
place  in  a  weaker  structure,  while  his  face  was  absolutely 
radiant  with  delight. 

"  Aye,  aye,  shako  away,"  exclaimed  the  old  man,  laugh- 
ing as  he  saw  the  pleasure  on  the  young  man's  face  and  felt 
tho  power  of  his  grip,  "  ye've  got  a  grip  like  a  bear-trap, 
and  if  ye  was  as  strong  in  yer  back  as  ye  are  in  yer  fingers 
ye'd  be  a  tough  one  to  meet  in  a  scrimmage  when  yer  blood 
was  up  and  the  whoop  of  yer  inimies  was  sharp  in  yer  cars, 
and  yo  warmed  to  tho  work.  And  now,  what  can  yo  do 
and  what  can  I  do  for  ye,  my  boy?  for  tall  as  ye  be  ye  seem 
no  more  than  a  boy  to  one  who  has  seen  seventy  years 
come  and  go,  and  whose  head  is  whitnin'  with  tho  snows  of 
the  winters  he  has  lived."  • 

"  I  can't  do  much,"  responded  the  other,  "  for  I  am  not 
smart,  but  slow,  and  I  never  could  learn  at  school  like  my 
brothers,  although  I  got  through  my  letters ;  and  mother, 
who  never  scolded  me  because  I  was  dull,  learnt  me  to  spell 
a  good  many  verses  in  the  Bible,  and  I  haven't  forgot  ono 
if  them  either.  But  I  can  work  at  almost  anything  you 
may  put  mo  at,  and  if  you  will  only  let  me  live  with  you  I 
will  do  anything  you  tell  me.  And  I  had  great  luck  at  trap- 
ping last  year,  and  I  have  as  nice  a  boat  as  was  ever  built, 


138  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

and  a  very  good  rifle,  and  traps  enough  to  set  a  twenty  mile 
line ;  and  I  love  the  woods  and  I  love  you,  for  I  have  heard 
of  your  goodness,  and  if  you  won't  laugh  at  me  because  I 
am  dull,  nor  blame  me  when  I  make  mistakes,  I  will  work 
for  you  as  long  as  I  live." 

While  the  poor  fellow  had  thus  been  running  on  in  his 
entreaty,  the  Old  Trapper  had  stood  looking  steadily  at  him; 
and  over  the  calm  gravity  of  his  features  there  came,  as  the 
youth  proceeded,  a  look  of  supreme  tenderness,  as  if  the 
spirit  of  the  mother,  to  which  the  speaker  alluded,  had  ac- 
tually taken  possession  of  the  Trapper's  heart,  and  was 
pleading  within  his  bosom  in  behalf  of  her  unfortunate  boy. 
For  a  moment  after  the  youth  had  done  speaking,  the  Trap- 
per stood  gazing  at  him  in  silence ;  then  he  said : 

"  Boy,  ye  may  come  with  me,  and  whether  ye  know  little* 
or  much,  be  quick  or  slow  in  larnin'  and  doin',  I  will  be  yer 
friend.  Ye  may  not  be  knowin',  and  I  honestly  doubt  if  the 
Lord  has  favored  ye  in  that  respect,  for  sartin  ;  but  His  gifts 
are  not  all  in  one  direction,  and  the  cuuningest  beaver  hasn't 
always  the  deepest  fur$  and  He  has  sartinly  gin  ye  an 
honest  face  and  a  sperit  as  innocent  as  a  faan's,  and  that 
goes  furder  in  His  sight,  both  here  and  in  the  world  to 
come,  than  a  knowin'  head  and  a  cunnin'  tongue,  as  I  jedge. 
So  ye  may  go  to  yer  boat,  which  I  conceit  to  be  in  the  out- 
let, and  we  will  fetch  our'n  over  the  carry  and  jine  ye  as 
soon  as  we  may.  And  Henry,"  continued  the  Old  Trapper, 
as  he  turned  toward  his  companion,  "  do  ye  take  the  hand 
of  the  lad,  for  the  Lord  alone  knows  the  parpose  He  has 
had  in  bringin'  us  together  in  this  ambushment,  nor  where 
the  trail  that  leads  us  from  this  mash  will  tarminato." 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  139 

At  the  word  of  the  Trapper,  Herbert  had  advanced  and 
took  in  a  frank,  hearty  way  the  hand  of  the  youth,  who 
seemed  greatly  embarrassed  at  the  friendly  overture,  but 
who  nevertheless  extended  his  hand  to  Herbert's  grasp,  but 
in  a  timid  way  that  characterizes  the  act  of  a  bashful  and 
shrinking  spirit.  "  Ye  sartinly  don't  look  much  alike,"  re- 
marked the  Trapper,  as  he  stood  looking  from  one  to  the 
other  of  the  young  men,  so  nearly  the  same  in  age,  and  so 
totally  unlike  in  other  respects.  "No,  ye  sartinly  don't 
look  alike,  and  yer  gifts  are  wider  apart  than  yer  looks, 
and  I  marvel  that  the  Lord  should  give  to  one  of  his  cre- 
tur's  so  much  and  so  little  to  another ;  but  I  dare  say  he 
has  bis  reasons  and  acts  with  jedgment  in  the  matter, 
though  to  a  mortal  who  knows  only  what  he  sees,  it  looks 
unfair  and  agin  reason.  But  the  Missioners  say  —  and  I 
conceit  there  may  be  truth  in  it,  —  that  things  on  the  arth 
got  twisted  by  some  devilment  or  other  in  the  beginnin' ; 
but  that  afore  long  the  Almighty  will  straighten  things  out, 
and  he  who  has  leetle  shall  have  much,  and  the  last  shall 
be  fust ;  but  it  will  take  a  good  deal  of  overhauling  as  I 
jedge,  and  I  don't  see  jest  how  it  is  to  be  fetched  about 
though  it  ought  to  be,  for  sartin.  Come,  lad,  ye  go  yer  way 
to  yer  boat,  and  we  will  jine  ye  as  soon  as  we  can  fetch  the 
canoe  and  the  pack  over  the  carry." 

Thirty  minutes  later,  Herbert  and  the  Trapper  had  crossed 
the  carry  and  stood  on  the  bank  of  the  stream  where  they 
had  expected  to  find  their  new  acquaintance,  but  no  one 
was  in  sight.  They  had  traversed  the  carry  in  that  noise- 
less fashion  which  a  life  of  caution,  natural  to  those  who 


140  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

depend  for  their  food  and  safety  on  the  stillness  of  their 
movements,  quickly  makes  habitual,  and  now  they  were 
standing,  the  Trapper  leaning  on  his  paddle  at  the  eud  of 
the  canoe  ready  to  launch  it  forth  on  the  stream,  and  Her- 
bert, rifle  in  hand,  on  the  extreme  edge  of  the  bank  wait- 
ing for  the  word  to  embark  wben  the  old  man  should  shove 
off.  For  several  minutes  they  stood  listening  for  some 
sound  that  should  reveal  the  coming  of  their  comrade ;  but 
no  sound  could  be  heard,  save  the  rustle  of  the  beech  leaves 
overhead,  and  the  squeaking  of  some  mold-mice  in  a  bog 
near  at  hand. 

"  I  say,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper  at  length,  in  a  low  tone 
of  voice  and  scarcely  above  a  whisper,  "  where  do  ye  think 
the  lad  is  ?  Here  we  be  on  the  outlet  where  we  told  him 
to  meet  us,  but  I  see  no  signs  of  the  boy.  What  shall  wo 
do,  —  Hoot !  here  ho  comes  !  The  lad  has  his  gifts,  but  ho 
isn't  parfect  at  the  paddle  yit,  for  I  sartinly  caught  the 
sound  of  it  in  the  sand,  where  the  stream  shallows  into  the 
lake.  You  will  see  him  round  the  bend  in  a  minit,  or  tho 
hole  in  my  ears  has  growed  up." 

Sure  enough,  in  a  moment  the  boat  came  round  the 
curve,  and  was  laid  along  side  the  bank  where  they  stood. 
In  the  boat  was  a  pile  of  traps  of  various  makes  and  sizes, 
and  just  from  the  maker's  hand ;  for  they  had  the  new, 
fresh  look  about  them  which  even  one  season's  uso  would 
take  away.  A  pair  of  oars  of  uncommon  length  and  admir- 
ably modeled,  trailed  from  their  row-locks.  A  vifle  of  unu- 
sual size  and  weight,  with  horn  and  bullet  pouch,  was  lashed 
with  buckskin  thongs  to  a  resting  place  evidently  made 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  141 

for  it,  along  the  right  side  of  the  boat,  which  was  itself 
extraordinarily  long  and  narrow,  being  fully  seventeen  feet 
in  length,  and  not  more  than  three  feet  in  its  widest  section 
at  the  center,  and  the  lines  on  which  it  was  built  was  per- 
fection itself,  for  fast  running.  A  hound,  of  great- size  and 
beauty,  evidently  a  cross  between  the  Irish  and  German 
breed,  sat  upright  on  its  haunches  on  the  forward  thwart. 
As  the  boat  moved  easily  up  to  the  bank  at  his  feet,  the 
Trapper  said :  — 

"  Well,  lad,  ye  are  well  furnished  for  sartin,  though  yer 
boat  is  too  long  to  work  easy  in  the  cricks,  and  would  make 
a  good  many  backs  ache  on  the  carry.  Yer  traps  is  all 
right  although  a  leetle  too  newish  for  ra'al  sarvice,  but  a 
few  months'  usin'  will  limber  them  up  mightily.  The  dog 
is  a  good  un  and  I  marvel  where  ye  found  him,  for  next  to 
Eover  here,  he  is  the  biggest  dog  of  his  cross  1  ever  seed 
in  the  woods.  I  think  if  they  consort  well  together  and 
are  friendly  we  will  let  them  drive  one  buck  this  fall  in 
company  for  the  sake  of  their  music,  for  a  hound's  mouth 
has  a  great  many  tunes  in  it  that  are  wurth  listenin'  to  on  a 
frosty  mornin',  if  I  am  any  jedge.  Yer  rifle  looks  biggish 
to  one  who  has  larnt  that  a  heavy  barrel  don't  make  the 
lead  go  any  furder,  but  it  has,  as  I  see,  a  big  bore,  and 
chambers  a  handful  of  powder,  and  that's  in  it's  favor  when 
ye  want  to  do  long  work  on  a  windy  day,  or  ye  are  on  the 
pint  of  squarin'  accounts  with  a  panther.  Ye  needn't  git 
out  lad,"  but  shove  down  the  crick  and  we  will  follow.  We 
are  pushin'  through  to  the  Saranacs  to  see  the  boat  race 
there,  and  take  a  hand  in  it  too  it  may  be,  and  we  must 


142  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

camp  to-night  thirty  mile  from  here,  and  the  sun  is  on  the 
west  side  of  the  pines  already.  We  shall  have  time  to  be- 
come better  acquainted  afore  we  git  through."  So  saying 
the  Trapper  launched  his  canoe  and  the  two  boats  disap- 
peared down  the  crooked  stream. 


CHAPTEE  III. 

CAMP   LIFE. 

"  In  Nature  taere  is  nothing  melancholy."  —  Coleridge. 

TT  was  nigh  sunset  when  a  boat,  followed  closely  by  a 
canoe  with  a  paddler  at  either  end  of  it,  shot  out  of  a 
bay  that  indents  the  western  shore  line  of  Big  Tupper,  near 
its  southern  extremity,  and  headed  toward  the  falls  made 
by  the  water  that  comes  tumbling  out  of  Bog  Eiver,  over 
the  ledge  of  rocks  which  impedes  its  easy  entrance  into 
the  lake  below.  Both  boat  and  canoe  were  being  propelled 
at  a  rate  which  showed  that  the  man  who  bent  to  the  oars, 
of  the  boat,  and  those  who  wielded  the  paddles  in  the  canoe 
behind  him,  were  accustomed  to  the  work  they  were  at  and 
were  not  disposed  to  loiter.  The  lake  was  as  smooth  as  if  no 
ripple  had  ever  stirred  upon  its  surface,  and  the  clouds  which 
lay  in  rolls  and  patches  overhead,  crimsoned  on  their  western 
sides  by  the  red  rays  of  the  declining  sun,  and  dark  on  the 
other  with  the  gloom  of  the  coming  night,  were  perfectly 
reflected  in  the  still  depths.  The  bay  out  of  which  they 
had  come  was  speckled  with  the  highly  colored  autumnal 
leaves  which  the  winds  of  the  day  had  blown  from  the 
maples  that  lined  the  upper  end  of  the  cove,  and  lay  like 
great  flakes  of  crimson  snow  that  could  not  sink  nor  melt, 
on  the  blue-green  surface.    Through  the  still  air  came  the 


144  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

roar  of  the  falls  in  solemn  murmurs,  now  swelling  with  full 
volume  of  sustained  sound,  and  anon  sinkiDg  and  dyiDg 
away  until  the  ear  almost  lost  the  direction  of  the  smoth- 
ered swell.  The  mountains  to  the  east  stood  forth  in  all 
their  grand  proportions,  their  vast  sides  from  base  to  sum- 
mit red  with  solar  flame,  and  their  peaks  showing  sharply 
in  outline  against  the  dusky  blue  of  the  remoter  sky.  The 
mountains  to  the  west  were  already  dark  with  the  growing 
gloom,  and  their  ponderous  shadows  stretched  half  across 
the  lake. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  said  the  man,  who,  kneeling  in  the 
bow  of  the  canoe,  was  wielding  his  paddle  with  the  precise 
and  leisurely  but  powerful  stroke  of  strength  and  consum- 
mate skill,  and  who  was  none  other  than  our  old  friend,  the 
Trapper,  —  "I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  said  he  addressing,  without 
turning  his  head  or  varying  his  stroke,  his  companion  in 
the  stern,  "the  lad  pulls  a  strong  stroke,  if  it  be  rather 
slow  and  not  so  snappy  as  is  jedicious  in  a  light  boat.  His 
gather  isn't  very  handsome,  for  sartin,  and  his  head  sort  of 
lops  down  on  his  chest,  but  his  boat  runs  on  an  even  keel 
and  he  reaches  for  a  good  deal  of  water.  I  conceit  we  had 
better  flirt  this  birch  up  to  him  a  leetle  and  let  him  know 
that  we  mean  to  git  to  the  pint  soon  enough  to  take  supper 
with  him  any  way.  Do  ye  lengthen  yer  stroke  a  foot  or  so, 
Henry,  and  give  me  the  beat  of  a  leetle  livelier  tune,  back 
there,  as  the  fiddlers  say,  for  the  paddle  in  the  bow  must 
take  its  hint  from  the  paddle  in.  the  starn,  onless  ye  would 
have  yer  boat  rockin'  like  a  cradle  in  the  settlements." 

To  this  injunction  Herbert  yielded  a  ready  assent,  and  set 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  145 

the  Trapper  a  stroke  that  gave  him  a  chance  to  put  his 
enormous  strength  into  his  paddle.  For  half  a  minute  not 
a  sound  was  heard,  save  the  dip  of  the  paddle-blades  as 
their  thin  edges  were  whipped  in  and  out  of  the  water,  and 
the  hiss  of  its  parted  surface  as  the  sharp  canoe  flew 
through  it.  Up  and  down  the  paddles  flashed.  They  rose 
and  fell  with  the  precision  of  machinery,  and  driven  by 
their  powerful  pressure  the  canoe  fairly  flashed  through  the 
dusky  air.  For  a  moment  it  gained  rapidly  on  the  boat  — 
so  rapidly  that  in  an  instant  its  beak  was  within  a  dozen 
feet  of  the  boat's  stern,  and  the  Trapper  called  good  natured- 
ly  to  the  man  who  was  working  soberly  at  the  oars  ahead :  — 

"  Look  out,  lad,  we  are  comin'  for  ye.  Henry  has  sar- 
tinly  tuck  the  floor  in  arnest,  with  his  moccasins  off,  and 
has  sot  my  paddle  agoin'  to  the  motions  of  a  jig  that  the 
parsons  in  the  settlements  never  danced  to.  We  don't  want 
to  run  ye  down,  lad,  and  spill  yer  traps  and  yer  dog  into 
the  water ;  but  ye  sartinly  will  have  to  lengthen  yer  stroke, 
and  put  a  little  more  snap  into  yer  gather,  or  we  shall  bunt 
ye  in  a  minit." 

"  I  don't  care  if  you  and  Henry  do  bunt  me,"  returned 
the  man  at  the  oars,  "  for  I  know  you  are  only  in  fun ;  but 
I'd  just  as  soon  run  faster  as  not,  for  the  sooner  we  get  in 
the  sooner  we  will  have  something  to  eat  —  and  I  am  real 
hungry ;  —  but  I  don't  think  you  can  catch  me,  for  I've  got 
a  first-rate  boat  to  run,  and  my  oars  are  very  long,  and  I'll 
lengthen  out  a  bit  if  you  say  so." 

While  he  had  been  saying  this,  in  a  simple,  quiet  tone  of 
voice,  with  not  the  least  vibration  of  excitement  in  it,  he 


146  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

had  been  lengthening  his  stroke  and  quickening  his  gather, 
until  by  the  time  he  had  done  speaking  he  was  pulling  with 
a  sweep  and  finish  that  no  one  could  have  believed  possible 
to  one  so  spare  of  frame  and  so  awkward  in  his  habitual 
motions. 

By  this  time  the  two  boats  were  fairly  flying,  for  The  Man 
Who  Didn't  Know  Much  had  set  himself  a  stroke  which 
an  English  coach  would  have  called  nearly  perfect,  —  long 
and  strong,  and  evenly  pulled  from  beginning  to  end.  The 
immense  length  of  his  body  and  arms,  taken  in  connection 
with  the  size  of  his  oars,  enabled  him  to  get  and  keep  a 
hold  on  the  water  a  full  yard  ahead  of  where  an  ordinary 
stroke  would  begin,  while  the  blades  remained  in  the  water 
until  they  had  passed  nearly  to  the  stern  of  the  boat  and 
were  ready  to  trail.  His  recovery  was  certainly  not  quick, 
but  it  did  not  linger  at  any  point,  and  was  made  with  the 
precision  of  machinery,  while  the  blades  dropped  into  the 
water  of  the  lake  as  if  it  was  oil,  for  not  a  drop  was  dis- 
turbed on  the  surface,  and  the  grip  they  got  on  the  water 
was  as  strong  as  pressure  could  make  it  from  the  start.  It 
was  a  stroke  such  as  no  one  that  had  not  the  Lad's  enor- 
mous length  could  deliver,  and  which  would  require  far 
greater  strength  than  his,  probably,  to  sustain ;  but  if  it 
could  be  kept  up,  no  mortal  man  of  shorter  build  could  live 
a  race  out  with  him. 

"  I  tell  ye,  lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  put  the  strength 
of  his  powerful  frame  into  the  paddle,  until  the  polished 
staff  bent  to  the  strain,  as  a  foil  bends  when  the  fencer  sud- 
denly drops  his  weight  on  to  it, — "I  tell  ye,  lad,  I  have  seed 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  147 

many  men  pull  oars  on  these  lakes  and  on  the  great  rivers 
of  the  West,  too,  when  death  was  in  full  chase  astarn  and 
they  had  good  reason  to  do  their  best ;  but  I  never  seed  a 
man  pull  sech  a  stroke  as  ye  are  pullin'.  And  if  ye  had  a 
leetle  more  thickness  across  the  chest  and  around  the  small 
of  yer  back,  I  don't  believe  a  man  on  the  arth  could 
hold  even  with  ye  for  a  mile,  onless  the  devil  was  arter  him, 
and  the  Lord  of  Marcy  gave  him  a  lift.  Now,  here  be  Henry 
and  me,  who  have  our  gifts,  and  among  them  I  sartinly 
reckon  the  jedicious  use  of  the  paddle  aint  the  least ;  and 
onless  he  has  forgot  himself,  I  dare  say  he  is  doin'  his  share. 
And  I  know  that  if  1  should  put  another  ounce  into  my 
stroke  I  should  break  as  tough  a  paddle  as  second-growth 
ash  ever  made ;  and  that  would  be  a  bit  of  foolishness,  as  I 
jedge.  And  yit  ye  hold  yer  own  agin  us  handsomely,  and 
it  sartinly  looks,  as  I  see  the  swing  of  yer  stroke,  and  git 
the  reason  of  it,  that  ye  might  let  out  another  link  or  two 
if  sarcumstances  raally  called  on  ye  for  it.  I  tell  ye,  Hen- 
ry," continued  the  Trapper,  as  he  turned  his  face  a  trifle 
toward  his  companion  and  lowered  his  voice,  "  I've  always 
held  that  two  paddles,  used  with  reason,  could  beat  any 
two  oars  in  the  univarse.  But  the  lad,  here,  is  sartinly 
holdin'  us  even,  and,  I  do  believe,  he  has  actally  gained  six 
good  inches  in  the  last  twenty  strokes ;  and  if  yer  paddle 
will  bear  it,  I  sartinly  advise  ye  to  put  a  leetle  more  force 
into  yer  stroke,  as  I  shall  into  mine,  if  the  staff  in  my  hands 
goes  to  pieces ;  for  I'll  never  own  up  that  one  man  at  the 
oars  can  beat  two  men  at  the  paddle,  if  I  be  one  of  'era, 
and  the  ash  holds  together.    So,  Henry,  quicken  yer  stroke 


148  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

agin,  and  drive  the  stick  ye  have  in  yer  hands  into  pieces, 
as  I  sartinly  will  mine,  onless  we  bunt  the  lad  fair  and 
square,  so  as  to  start  the  paint  on  his  starn-board,  within 
the  next  fifty  rods." 

The  Old  Trapper  was  evidently  warming  to  the  work,  at 
the  thought  that  one  of  his  favorite  notions  was  in  peril, 
and  the  manner  in  which  he  flashed  his  paddle-blade  far 
out  ahead,  as  he  finished  his  summons  to  Herbert,  showed 
that  his  next  stroke  would  test  the  strength  of  his  paddle 
beyond  what  ordinary  wood  could  stand;  but  the  stroke 
was  never  delivered,  for  as  his  body  rose  into  the  air  and 
extended  itself  forward  for  the  full  exercise  of  his  immense 
powers,  a  sharp,  quick  quiver  ran  through  the  canoe  from 
stem  to  stern,  and,  yielding  to  the  tremendous  sweep  which 
Herbert  gave  to  his  guiding  blade,  it  swooped  so  suddenly 
aside  from  the  line  of  its  previous  course  that  any  one  less 
accustomed  that  the  old  man  to  the  frail  thing  would  have 
lost  his  balance  and  beeu  pitched  headlong  into  the  lake. 

"  What  is  it,  boy,  what  is  it  ? "  exclaimed  the  Trapper  in  a 
hoarse  whisper,  as  he  felt  the  signal  ruu  through  the  canoe, 
"  and  where  away  is  he  ?  By  the  Lord,  Henry,"  continued 
he,  as  his  eyes  caught  sight  of  an  object  standing  out  in 
bold  relief  on  the  shore  a  hundred  rods,  perhaps,  to  his 
right,  "  a  bigger  buck  never  wet  his  hoofs  in  the  water  or 
made  his  bed  in  the  moss.  Ye  have  done  this  thing  sar- 
cumspectly,  lad,  and  larut  an  old  man  the  foolishness  of 
talkin'  and  actin'  like  a  person  without  eyes  when  his  belt 
is  slack  from  emptiness,  and  there's  no  ven'son  in  the  pack. 
That's  right,  Henry,  git  round  into  place  and  take  yer  rifle 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  149 

and  leave  the  paddlin'  to  me,  for  yer  eye  is  keen  and  yer 

i 
hands  steady,  and  the  buck,  there,  is  an  old  'un  and  has 

seed  man  afore,  and  ye  will  have  to  shoot  a  far  shot  and 

put  yer  bullet  where  it  ought  to  go,  or  we'll  sup  without 

meat  to-Dight,  that's  sartin." 

The  actions  of  the  two  men  thus  suddenly  and  unex- 
pectedly interrupted  in  their  race,  were  characteristic,  and 
perfectly  illustrated  the  habits  of  those  who  depend  on  the 
alertness  of  their  senses  for  their  profits  and  their  food  in 
the  woods. 

The  eyes  of  Herbert,  even  amid  the  excitement  of  the 
race,  acting  in  harmony  with  a  law  of  habit  which  had  in 
it  from  constant  practice,  the  force  of  nature,  had  never 
shortened  the  range  of  their  observation,  but  searched  with 
occasional  glances  the  gathering  gloom  of  the  western 
shore  for  some  such  presence  as  they  had  at  last  —  in  the 
extreme  end  of  a  little  cove  heavily  bordered  with  cedar 
and  balsam  —  discovered.  With  instinctive  sagacity  he  had 
shied  the  canoe  to  the  left,  out  into  the  lake  and  away  from 
the  buck,  and  in  such  a  manner  that  when  it  came  to  a 
stand,  the  end  in  which  he  was  sitting  would  be  pointed 
toward  the  game.  Thought  is  scarcely  quicker  than  the 
motion  with  which  the  Old  Trapper,  the  instant  his  eyes 
caught  sight  of  the  buck,  had  slid  from  his  kneeling  pos- 
ture into  the  bottom  of  the  canoe  where,  now  sitting,  he 
was  ready  for  the  advance.  Herbert  had  no  sooner  deliv- 
ered the  stroke  with  which  the  canoe  had  been  turned  from 
its  course  and  checked  in  its  career,  than,  sliding  his  paddle 
intr  it,  he  changed  his  position  to  the  reverse  of  what  it 


150  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

had  been,  and  with  a  motion  of  his  hand  unlashed  his  rifle 
from  its  fastenings  and  lifted  it  to  his  knees.  Thus,  in  an 
instant,  the  change  had  been  affected,  and  the  difficult  job 
of  paddling  up  to  a  wild  deer  in  daylight,  was  about  to  be 
attempted. 

Thus  they  sat,  ready  for  the  start,  but  before  they  started 
the  Trapper  delivered  himself,  thus  characteristically  :  — 

"  Henry,  we  have  made  forty  mile  sence  we've  tasted  food, 
and  the  meal  is  scant  in  the  bag,  and  the  pork  no  bigger 
than  the  text  of  a  parson's  sermon ;  and  the  pack  of  the 
lad  yender — who  hasn't  larnt  what  we  are  up  to  yit,  for 
he's  pullin'  the  same  stroke  he  was  when  we  quit,  as  if  he 
had  no  eyes  in  his  head,  and  etarnity  was  before  him  —  has 
more  traps  in  it  than  biscuit,  and  though  traps  be  good 
enough  in  their  way,  yit  they  can  neither  be  briled  nor 
spitted,  and  I'm  as  empty  as  a  horn  with  not  a  karnal  in  it. 
I  sartinly  hope  ye  may  be  able  to  sink  the  lead  into  him  in 
a  spot  where  it  will  weigh  most.  Now,  boy,  I  will  git  ye 
as  nigh  as  I  can,  and  give  ye  the  favor  of  all  the  light  there 
is,  and  I  have  strong  hopes  of  yer  gittin'  him,  for  yer  gifts 
at  shootin'  are  sartinly  wonderful.  I  know  ye  be  jedicious 
in  kalculatin'  distance,  and  I've  never  seen  ye  miss  a  cretur 
ye  drawed  on  yit,  but  it's  mighty  dusky  for  close  work,  and 
I  sartinly  wont  blame  ye  if  ye  miss  him.  Don't  lift  yer 
piece  till  I  signal,  for  I  know  the  habits  -of  the  cretur'  and 
will  keep  my  eyes  on  him.  I  shan't  give  ye  the  sign  till 
he's  about  to  jump.  So  when  ye  git  it,  boy,  don't  be  long 
in  findin'  the  bottom  of  yer  sights,  and  remember  to  allow 
for  the  darkness.    I  hope,  with  the  feelin'  of  a  hungry  man, 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  151 

that  ye'll  hit  him,  Henry,  for  I  am  sartinly  empty  end  tho 
cravin'  of  natur'  is  strong  within  me.  Now  do  accordin'  to 
the  gifts  the  Lord  has  gin  ye,  or  three  men  will  go  supper- 
less  to  bed." 

As  the  Trapper  concluded  his  speech  the  canoe  began  to 
move  toward  the  buck,  but  with  a  motion  so  easy  and  true 
to  the  line  of  its  progress  that,  to  one  looking  at  it  in  the 
direction  of  its  movement,  the  movement  itself  could  not 
be  perceived.  The  arms  of  the  Trapper  were  sunk  well 
over  the  sides  of  the  canoe,  and  his  paddle  played  in  the 
water,  without  revealing  its  motions,  as  noiselessly  and  al- 
most as  invisibly  as  do  the  webbed  feet  of  the  Northern 
Diver.  His  body  was  so  held  as  to  place  Herbert's  form 
exactly  between  the  buck  and  himself,  so  that  neither  the 
motion  of  the  canoe,  as  it  slowly  floated  forward,  nor  the 
body  and  motions  of  the  paddler,  could  be  seen.  Herbert 
sat  in  plain  view,  with  his  rifle  across  his  knees,  and  his 
finger  within  the  guard ;  but  his  body  was  as  motionless  as 
if  carved  out  of  the  air,  and  the  features  of  his  face,  even, 
were  stiffened  into  the  rigidity  of  marble.  Thus  the  canoe 
glided  into  the  deepening  shadows  of  the  western  shore  and 
the  mouth  of  the  little  cove,  directly  towards  the  game. 

At  the  farther  end  of  the  bay  stood  the  buck,  his  feet 
deep  in  the  brown  sands,  and  his  antlered  head  lifted,  as  if 
in  proud  challenge,  into  the  air.  His  posture  was  one  of 
haughty  interrogation  as  to  what  the  dim  object  gliding  in 
upon  him  might  be,  and  superb  defiance  of  it.  Twice  he 
lifted  a  fore  leg  and  drove  his  pointed  hoof  into  the  sand, 
with  the  expression  of  lordly  impatience  at  the  ignorance 


152  .ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

or  audacity  of  those  who  dared  disturb,  by  their  bold  pres- 
ence, his  royal  privacy.  And  as  the  canoe  floated  still 
nearer,  twice  he  lifted  his  brown  muzzle  into  the  air  and 
blew  a  blast  from  his  resounding  nostrils,  that  tore  fiercely 
through  the  stillness,  and  made  the  woods  behind  him  ring 
again,  while  the  mountain  across  the  lake  received  the 
wrathful  sound,  and  passed  it  back  in  diminutive  modula- 
tions to  the  spot  from  whence  it  came.  Once  he  started, 
as  if  some  terrible  suspicion  had  for  an  instant  broken  over 
the  ramparts  of  his  courage  and  stormed  into  the  very 
pavilion  of  his  kingly  spirit;  but  it  was  only  a  passing 
weakness.  He  gave  one  jump,  then  stopped,  planted  him- 
self as  if  incapable  of  fear ;  lifted  his  nose  high  up,  and 
blew  again  a  wrathful  challenge  to  the  rude  intruders,  while 
the  hair  on  the  line  of  his  back  ridged  in  wrath,  and  his 
feet  smote  the  beach  like  hammers. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  canoe  floated  as  noiselessly  onward 
as  a  feather,  and  with  a  steadiness  of  motion  that  never 
varied  a  hair's  width.  Even  when  the  buck  jumped,  not 
a  muscle  of  Herbert's  face  moved,  and  the  finger  which  lay 
lightly  on  the  trigger,  could  not  have  been  steadier  had  the 
hand  to  which  it  belonged  been  incapable  of  feeling.  Thus 
the  man  in  the  bow  held  his  position  with  rigid  fixedness 
and  the  man  in  the  stern  worked  his  paddle  with  the  same 
even  and  steady  play  of  the  wrist.  But  when  the  buck 
blew  his  second  challenge,  after  he  made  his  bound,  and 
the  progress  of  the  canoe  was  fast  bringing  him  ia  lino 
with  a  beech,  whose  silvery  white  leaves  furnished  a  back- 
ground that  would  serve  to  bring  out  his  head  in  partial  re- 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  153 

lief,  at  least,  the  paddle  of  the  Trapper  stopped  its  move- 
ment, and  settled  to  a  trail,  and  when  the  onward  progress 
had  lifted  the  antlers  to  the  level  of  the  silver  leaves,  the 
least  possible  quiver  ran  along  the  sides  of  the  canoe. 

For  a  second  after  the  signal  was  given,  Herbert  moved 
not  a  muscle,  and  then  the  rifle  jumped  to  his  cheek,  and 
before  it  seemed  possible  for  his  eye  to  have  found  the  line 
of  the  sight,  the  fiery  flame  leapt  into  the  dusky  air  and 
the  mountain  rang  with  the  rattling  echoes  of  the  sharp 
explosion.  The  buck  never  jumped,  but  dropped  in  his 
tracks  as  if  his  legs  had  been  cut  from  under  him,  and  lay 
in  a  limp  heap ;  for  the  bullet  had  entered  between  the 
eyes  and  torn  its  passage  through  the  spinal  column  as  it 
passed  out.  The  Trapper  never  said  a  word  until  he  had 
reached  the  spot  where  the  dead  deer  lay,  and  had  exam- 
ined both  the  entrance  and  exit  of  the  bullet ;  but  after  he 
had  bled  the  game  and  had  wiped  his  knife  free  of  stain, 
he  turned  to  his  comrade  and  said :  — 

"  I  knowed  ye  could  shoot  well  afore  to-day,  for  I've  seed 
ye  do  shootin'  that  would  put  to  shame  many  who  boast  of 
their  exploits  with  the  rifle,  but  what  ye  have  did  here  on 
the  buck  shows  the  parfection  of  the  wepon  ye  carry,  and 
that  yer  gifts  lie  in  the  direction  of  a  grooved  barrel.  I 
sartinly  thought  ye  was  waitin'  a  leetle  too  long  on  the  cre- 
tur'  arter  I  gin  ye  the  signal,  and  my  inards  sort  of  shriv- 
elled with  disappintment  at  the  idee  of  losin  him,  but  I 
conceit  the  reason  of  yer  waitin'  now  I've  seed  where  ye've 
drove  the  bullet,  and  I  confess  ye  mixed  yer  brains  with  yer 
powder  and  shot  with  reason  and  jedgment,  for  the  body 


J  64  ADIRONDACK   TALEiJ, 

showed  dim  agin  the  bank  and  the  white  leaves  of  the 
beech  here  made  his  head  yer  best  chance ;  but  the  chance 
was  none  of  the  best  and  I  honestly  question  if  there's 
another  man  in  the  woods  that  could  have  did  as  ye  have 
considerin'  the  darkness  and  the  distance.  Yis,  yer  gifts  in 
shootin'  are  sartinly  oncotnmon,  and  I  trust  ye  feel  grateful 
to  the  Giver  of  them.  This  buck  is  as  big  as  natur'  allows, 
Henry,"  continued  the  Trapper,  as  he  laid  hold  of  his  legs 
to  roll  him  into  the  canoe,  "  and  his  antlers  will  make  the 
eyes  of  the  folks  in  the  settlements  stick  out." 

In  ten  minutes  they  were  off  the  point  on  which  a  rousing 
tire  was  burning,  while  the  Lad,  for  so  the  Old  Trapper  had 
Darned  him,  was  plying  his  axe  vigorously,  preparing  wood 
for  the  night. 

"  Well,  Lad,"  called  the  Trapper  from  the  canoe,  as  it 
swung  in  toward  the  shore  where  a  stretch  of  sand  made 
the  landing  safe  for  the  frail  and  heavily-laden  vessel,  "  so 
ye  stopped  rowin'  arter  awhile  did  ye  ?  The  last  I  saw  of 
ye,  ye  was  goin'  it  as  if  ye  had  taken  the  job  for  the  winter, 
and  was  puttin'  yer  best  licks  into  the  beginnin'.  The  sight 
of  yer  arnestness  sort  of  warmed  me  up,  and  made  my  eyes 
see  nothin'  but  the  eend  of  yer  boat.  And  if  it  hadn't  been 
for  Henry  here  we  should  have  run  by  as  big  a  buck  as  ever 
wore  antlers,  and  gone  supperless  to  bed.  Come  down, 
Lad,  and  take  a  look  at  the  cre'tur,  for  he  is  as  big  as  an 
ox,  and  the  fat  lies  as  thick  on  his  ribs  as  if  he  had  fed  in 
the  cornfields  of  the  settlements.  There  will  be  some 
strong  and  arnest  movements  of  teeth  on  this  pint  to-night 
arter  the  meat  has  cooled  a  trifle,  or  else  you  and  Henry 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  155 

has  had  better  eatin'  than  I  have,  sence  wo  left  the  pond  of 
beavers." 

Two  hours  later  three  men  might  have  been  seen  reclin- 
in'  around  a  huge  camp-fire,  whose  flame  rose  directly  up- 
ward in  a  steady  column,  illuminating  the  branches  of  the 
great  pines  overhead  and  around,  and  casting  its  bright 
reflections  far  out  over  the  surface  of  the  lake. 

"  "X  is,  this  is  Tomahawk  Pint,  Henry,  of  which  ye  have 
heerd  me  speak  afore ;  and  right  back  here  in  the  swale  is 
'Bloody  Spring.'  And  it  is  well  named,  too;  for,  though 
its  waters  are  cool  and  pure  as  natur'  ever  brewed,  yit  I  re- 
member the  day  when  its  depths  was  red  with  mortal  blood ; 
for  a  dreadful  scrimmage  was  fought  here  years  ago,  and 
the  dead  lay  thick  around  it,  as  the  cones  on  the  ground  to- 
night. Yis,  I  was  young  then ;  but  I  did  my  part  accordin' 
to  my  gifts,  and  I  was  one  of  the  few  that  came  out  alive; 
for  'twas  a  close  thing,  hand  to  hand,  and  the  powder  gin 
out  on  both  sides  afore  'twas  ended.  And  we  took  to  the 
knife  and  the  clubbed  rifle,  for  blood  was  hot  that  day,  and 
marcy  was  little  thought  of  by  redskin  or  white,  and  few  of 
us  came  out  with  full  veins,  I  tell  ye." 

"  What  did  you  fight  each  other  for?  "  said  the  Lad.  "  I 
think  it  wrong  to  fight,  don't  you,  John  Norton  ? " 

"Sartinly,  Lad,  sartinly,  under  ordinary  sarcumstances, 
and  in  peace  time;  but  there  be  times  when  it's  necessary 
to  draw  blood,  especially  in  self  defence;  and  war,  if  it  be  a 
righteous  one,  is  self  defence  in  a  large  sort  of  a  way,  as 
1  understand  it.  But  it's  a  dreadful  thing  to  take  a  mortal 
life,  I'll  allow,  and  I  never  lined  the  sights  on  a  man  when 


156  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

it  didn't  seem  to  me,  all  thiDgs  consdered,  that  he  had  lived 
long  enough,  and  should  git  a  taste  of  the  Jedgmont ;  but 
I  will  confess  that  when  things  git  close,  and  ye  have  to 
take  to  yer  knife,  and  there  is  two  to  one  agin  ye,  a  man 
hasn't  much  time  to  arger  the  question  of  right  and  wrong, 
and  I  dare  say  in  sech  sarcumstances  I  have  used  the  rifle- 
stock  and  the  knife  a  leetle  loose  and  careless-like ;  and  I 
recollect  the  awful  scrimmage  we  had  here  sixty  year  agone 
as  if  it  was  but  yesterday,  and  it  was  a  most  onreasonable 
and  bloody  battle,  for  sartin,  for  when  'twas  ended,  I  was 
the  only  man  who  could  keep  his  feet,  and  I  had  three  bul- 
lets inside  of  me,  and  a  knife  blade  driven  into  my  shoul- 
der here,  with  the  handle  broke  square  off  in  front,  and  the 
p'int  stickin'  out  of  my  back.  But  it  wasn't  our  fault,  for 
when  their  powder  gin  out,  the  Huron's  came  at  us  with 
their  tomahawks,  and  they  outnumbered  us  four  to  one, 
and  we  had  to  show  the  scamps  the  borderers'  grit,  and  we 
did,  for  I  sent  the  last  of  the  vagabonds  into  etarnity  with 
marks  on  his  throat  and  a  hole  in  his  side,  which  told  the 
Lord  as  plain  as  writin',  I  reckon,  that  John  Norton  was 
sarvin'  him  in  arnest  on  the  arth.  But,  Lad,  yer  sperit  is 
right,  and  it  is  better  to  live  in  peace  with  yer  fellow-men, 
if  ye  can." 

"  That's  what  mother  used  to  say  to  me,"  replied  the  Lad, 
and  the  good  Book  says :  'If  -  thy  -  enemy  -  smite  -  you  - 
on  -  the  -  one  -  cheek,  -  turn  -  to  -  him  -  the  -  other,  - 
also ;  and  -  if  -  a  -  man  -  take  -  away  -  thy  -  cloak,  -  give 
-  him  -  thy  -  coat,  -  also.'  Haven't  I  said  it  right  Hen- 
ry?" 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.'  157 

"  Tes,  you  have  said  it  right,  word  for  word,"  replied  the 
other. 

*  I  knew  I  hadn't  forgot  it,"  continued  the  Lad,  with  the 
least  possible  inflection  of  pride  in  his  voice,  "  and  I  know 
it  is  a  wise  saying,  for  last  fall  a  bad  man  got  on  the  line  of 
my  traps,  and  stole  my  skins  as  fast  as  I  could  trap  them. 
And  one  day  I  caught  him  stealing  a  mink,  and  I  went  up 
to  him  so  still  he  never  knew  I  was  nigh  until  I  touched 
him,  and  he  jumped  as  if  he  had  been  shot,  and  drew  his 
knife  on  me ;  but  I  didn't  fear  him,  for  I  knew  I  was  right, 
and  he  was  wrong,  and  I  told  him  'twas  wicked  to  steal  and 
that  if  he  wanted  skins  I  would  give  him  some,  rather  than 
he  should  steal  them,  if  he  would  go  to  the  cabin.  And  he 
went,  and  I  made  him  up  a  roll  of  good  nice  ones,  and  in 
the  morning,  when  he  was  about  to  go  away,  I  gave  the  roll 
to  him ;  but  he  wouldn't  touch  it,  but  said  he  would  never 
steal  another  skin  as  long  as  he  lived  j  and  I  don't  believe 
he  will,  do  you,  John  Norton  ? " 

"  I  shouldn't  think  he  would,  Lad,  if  he  has  any  inards  to 
him,"  returned  the  Trapper,  as  he  looked  steadily  into  the 
guileless  face  before  him,  "  it  sartiuly  worked  well  in  your 
case,  but  I  don't  conceit  the  rod  would  fit  every  bore.  Now, 
I've  read  the  Bible  off  and  on  for  sixty  year,  and  take  it 
all  in  all,  its  a  pritty  reasonable  book,  although  there  be  por- 
tions of  it  that  I  can't  make  sense  of,  and  now  and  then  ye 
run  agin  a  sayin'  that's  sartinly  onreasonable,  and  the  varse 
the  Lad  has  quoted,  Henry,  is  one  of  'em.  I've  thought  a 
good  deal  over  those  varses,  and  I've  ruther  settled  down 
to  the  opinion  that  either  the  words  have  got  into  the  book 


158  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

by  mistake,  or  else  that  the  Lord  didn't  know  much  about 
the  cost  of  jackets,  and  sech  like  garments.  For  it's  sar- 
tinly  agin  reason  to  tell  a  man  who  has  had  his  westcott 
stole,  to  give  the  vagabond  that  stole  it,  his  shirt  also ; 
especially  if  it  be  late  in  the  fall,  and  thread  is  scant  in  the 
cabin.  Now  I  run  agin  a  half-breed  on  the  line  of  my  traps 
last  winter,  and  he  had  a  fisher  in  his  thievin'  fingers,  and  I 
told  him  to  drop  it  or  there  would  be  trouble.  I  reasoned 
with  him  about  the  onrighteousness  of  the  act,  not  exactly 
as  the  Lad  would,  perhaps,  but  I  gin  him  a  bit  of  my  mind 
which  I  dare  say  was  equal  to  Scriptur',  under  the  sarcum- 
stances.  Well,  two  weeks  later  —  and  I  had  lost  a  dozen 
good  pelts  in  the  meanwhile,  —  I  caught  the  scamp  fishin' 
around  for  a  beaver  that  had  run  out  into  the  pond  with 
one  of  my  chains  to  him,  and  I  conceited  the  thing  had 
gone  fur  enough,  and  I  put  my  mark  on  him  so  the  Lord 
shouldn't  have  any  doubts  who  he  was,  or  who  he  stole 
from  when  he  should  come  sneakin'  into  the  jedgment,  even 
if  I  shouldn't  be  round  to  testify  in  the  case.  The  Lad's 
way  is  a  good  un'  for  sartin,  if  it  will  work ;  but  bullets  is 
cheaper  than  pelts,  and  I  shouldn't  offer  a  roll  of  good  skins 
to  any  thief  I  catched  at  my  traps,  Scriptur5  or  no  Scriptur7. 
I  tell  ye,  powder  makes  a  louder  sound  than  pious  words, 
in  the  ears  of  a  sneak  when  fingerin'  pelts  that  don't  belong 
to  him.    What  say  ye,  Henry  1 " 

"  I  say  we  had  better  go  to  sleep,  now,  and  talk  some 
other  time.  But  before  we  turn  in,  what  think  you  of  a 
hunt  in  the  morning.  The  hounds  take  kindly  together, 
and  would  run  a  buck  to  water  iu  an  hour.    We  could  take 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  159 

bis  body  out  and  sell  it  at  the  Saranacs,  or  jerk  it  here  be- 
fore we  start;  for  there's  two  days  yet  before  the  races. 
What  say  you  both  ? " 

The  idea  was  a  pleasing  one  both  to  the  Lad  and  the 
Trapper,  and  after  a  few  moments  further  canvassing  the 
matter,  they  wrapped  themselves  in  their  blankets,  and 
with  their  feet  almost  in  the  warm  ashes,  and  with  no  cov- 
ering but  the  sky  above  their  heads,  fell  asleep. 


CHAPTEE  IV. 

TEE  HUNT. 

'  *  The  bounding  elk,  whose  antlers  tear 
The  branches,  falls  before  my  aim."  —  Bryant. 

~\  /TOENHsTGr  in  the  wilderness.  The  east  was  rosy  red, 
save  where  a  layer  of  clouds  lying  athwart  the  rising 
light  cut  it  from  north  to  south  with  its  black  plane.  The 
raouDtain  summits  to  the  east  were  crested  with  reflected 
fire,  while  the  snow  which  crowned  them  with  its  cold 
beauty  blushed  at  the  kiss  of  the  ardent  morning.  The 
lake  was  one  vast  valley  filled  with  fog.  The  impenetrable 
fleece  possessed  the  intervening  space  from  shore  to  shore, 
and  even  masked  the  lower  mountains  from  sight.  The 
trees  dripped  .lazily.  The  gayly  tinted  leaves  of  the  maples 
in  the  coves,  without  cause,  let  go  their  hold  upon  the  stems 
and  floated  in  indolent,  zigzag  motions  downward.  The 
squirrels  in  the  thickets  were  waking  the  tiny  echoes  with 
their  noisy  chatterings.  At  intervals  the  harsh  shriek  of 
the  king-fisher  disturbed  the  air,  while  now  and  then  a  loon 
sent  forth  its  weird  call  from  amidst  the  feathery  fleece. 
Soon  the  sun  let  loose  its  energies;  the  red  beams  mar- 
shalled themselves  upon  the  eastern  crests  and  then  charged 
downward  in  fiery  squadrons  upon  the  fog.  Into  it  and 
through   it  they  dashed.     They  trampled  it  under  foot, 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  161 

opened  broad  lanes  from  shore  to  shore,  cut  into  it  right 
and  left  and  sent  it  flying.  The  warm,  vibrant  life  was  too 
much  for  the  cold,  inert  deadness,  and  in  a  brief  space  the 
mighty  orb  of  day  stood  forth  in  the  blue  sky  in  all  his 
glory.  The  lake  lay  plain  to  the  view,  but  its  surface  still 
smoked.  Soon  the  dead  air  became  a  current,  and  waves 
of  thinnest  vapor  rolled  along  the  smooth  surface.  Here 
and  there  a  shortened  column  of  denser  mist  rose  from  the 
water.  In  the  bays  and  around  the  shores  of  the  coves 
where  were  the  inlets,  a  few  vagrant  patches  might  be  seen 
stealing  like  detected  guilt  from  the  sight  of  day.  Thus 
morning,  bright  and  clear,  with  all  it  brings  of  light,  and 
warmth,  and  renewed  life,  had  triumphed  over  its  gloomy 
foe. 

Just  as  the  fog  began  to  lift  from  the  surface  of  the  water, 
a  boat  with  the  Lad  in  it,  shoved  out  from  Tomahawk  Point 
and  started  down  the  lake.  As  it  glided  forward  the  old 
Trapper,  who  was  in  the  act  of  charging  his  rifle,  paused  a 
moment  with  his  palm  on  the  top  of  his  ramrod,  and 
said :  — 

u  Now,  Lad,  don't  ye  forgit  where  ye  are  to  watch;  Henry 
will  lie  off  the  big  rock,  and  ye  are  to  place  yerself  inside 
the  island,  so  ye  can  see  well  down  the  lake.  I  shan't  start 
the  dogs  'till  I  find  a  big  un,  and  he  won't  run  fur  if  he's 
fat,  aud  '  Sport'  is  as  ye  say  he  is  in  a  race ;  and  I  warrant 
'  Eover '  won't  fool  away  time,  for  I  can  see  by  the  look  in 
his  eye  that  he's  hungry  for  the  scent,  and  will  be  crazy 
when  he  gits  it  warm  and  strong.  Keep  yer  eyes  open, 
Lad,  for  I  shall  drive  in  a  big  un,  an'  if  ye  are  as  good  at 


162  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

shootin'  as  ye  be  at  rowin'  ye'll  kill  him  afore  he  gits  within 
a  half  a  mile  of  the  lake ; "  and  the  Trapper  laughed  at  his 
own  conceit.  "  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  he  continued,  as  he  drove 
the  bullet  home,  still  keeping  his  eye  on  the  receding  boat, 
"The  Lad  has  his  gifts,  but  it's  wonderful  that  the  Lord 
should  do  them  up  in  that  sort  of  a  fashion ;  for  he's  uu- 
naterally  lengthy  to  begin  with,  an'  looks  as  if  he  was  built 
in  sections,  an'  as  if  the  sections  was  not  half  put  together 
at  that;  but  his  sperit  is  right,  an'  he  sartinly  pulled  a 
stroke  last  night  that  was  amazin'.  There,  Henry,"  he  con- 
tinued, as  he  carefully  capped  the  tubes,  "  I  didn't  like  the 
way  the  bullet  in  the  left  barrel  felt  as  I  sent  it  down,  for  it 
went  onsteady  ;  but  the  one  I  have  put  into  the  right  was  a 
beauty,  an'  it  drove  even  and  true  from  muzzle  to  chamber 
as  a  bullet  should  drive.    So  now  if  ye  are  ready,  take  yer 

rifle  and  the  dogs,  an'  we  will  start  the  canoe.    The  sun 

» 
has  eat  up  the  mist  an'  it's  high  time  the  pups  was  out." 

In  a  moment  the  canoe,  containing  the  Trapper,  Herbert, 
•»  and  the  hounds,  left  the  point  and  in  five  minutes  was 
across  the  bay.  The  Trapper  stood  holding  the  dogs  in  the 
leash  on  the  rock  for  an  instant,  and  said  :  — 

"  If  I  was  in  yer  place,  Henry,  I  would  lie  well  off  here 
abreast  of  the  rock,  for  the  runway  comes  out  by  that  ledge 
there,  an'  more  than  one  deer  have  I  seen  take  the  jump 
fiyiu' ;  an'  if  the  dogs  play  fast,  as  I  think  they  will,  — for  I 
shan't  start  'em  'bntil  I  start  a  buck  from  his  nest,  —  an' if 
he  should  take  water  here  ye  will  see  as  pritty  a  sight  as  a 
hunter  over  saw,  an'  one  to  make  yer  eyes  brighten,  an'  the 
blood  in  yer  veins  to  tingle."    So  saying  the  Trapper  disap- 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  163 

peared  with  the  dogs  in  the  thicket,  and  Herbert,  acting  on 
the  old  man's  suggestions,  paddled  sixty  rods  out  into  the 
lake,  and  lifting  his  rifle  to  his  knees,  waited. 

Thus  Herbert  sat  listening.  The  morning  had  brought 
no  wind,  and  the  lake  stretched  in  level  expanse,  unruffled, 
from  shore  to  shore.  Objects  were  not  wanting  to  amuse 
the  eye.  A  partridge  strutted  out  on  the  trunk  of  a  huge 
pine  that  projected  outward  from  the  shore,  ruffed  its  neck, 
clucked,  spread  out  its  fan-like  tail,  and  raising  itself  to  its 
highest  stretch,  drummed  with  nervous  strokes  of  its  wings, 
loud  and  long,  with  evident  pride  at  its  brave  performance. 
A  family  of  wood  ducks,  a  mother  and  six  younglings,  of 
full  size  but  lacking  the  beauty  of  older  birds,  led  by  the 
lordly  drake  in  full  plumage — his  crest  of  purple  and 
bronze  alive  with  color,  and  his  whole  body,  as  the  warm 
rays  of  the  sun  smote  upon  his  back,  ablaze  with  brilliance, 
fairly  converting  him  into  a  bunch  of  floating  radiance  — 
swam  in  Indian  file  around  the  outer  rock  and  continued 
on  their  course,  until  their  tiny  wake  faded  from  sight  in 
the  inner  cove. 

A  great  northern  diver,  that  had  dived  from  some  un- 
known point,  rose  for  air  within  six  rods  of  Herbert's  sta- 
tion, shook  the  water  from  its  eyes,  flattened  itself  an  in- 
stant in  suspicion  as  it  caught  sight  of  the  canoe,  and  the 
motionless  man  sitting  in  it ;  then,  reassured,  rose  on  its 
webbed  feet,  shook  its  narrow  wings,  showing  the  rounded 
fulness  of  its  snow-white  breast,  and  the  spotted  beauty  of 
its  back ;  then  settled  back  upon  the  water,  thrust  its  head 
playfully  beneath  the  surface,  withdrew  it,  lifted  its  black 


164  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

bill  into  the  air  and  laughed  its  weird,  witch-like  laughter, 
till  the  honest  hills  mocked  wickedly  in  reply.  So  Herbert 
sat,  observant  of  nature's  doings,  with  eyes  that  lost  not  a 
motion  on  lake  or  shore,  and  with  ears  open  to  receive  the 
slightest  sound.  At  last  it  came.  One  instant)  and  the  hills 
embodied  silence ;  not  a  vibration  stirred  above  their  mo- 
tionless pines.  The  next,  and  the  hollow  air  rang  as  if  with 
the  notes  of  a  dozen  bugles  suddenly  blown  by  practiced 
lips,  clear,  strong  and  full,  from  the  signal. 

No  initial  yelp,  no  whimpering  and  doubtful  prelude,  pre- 
pared the  listener's  feelings  for  the  coming  peal ;  but  loud, 
and  long,  and  full,  as  voice  of  hound  could  make  it,  when 
the  game  starts  from  his  nest  in  close  and  maddeuing  view, 
did  the  clarion  peal  ascend.  It  rose  above'  the  pines,  and 
filled  the  upper  air,  rolled  down  the  ravines  an  avalanche 
of  softening  sound,  swelled  up  above  the  peaks,  and  ran  in 
minor  ripples  of  noise  along  the  ridges,  and  even  sent  its 
waves  of  melody  across  the  level  lake,  breaking  at  last,  and 
dying  away  in  melting  reverberations  on  the  farther  shore. 
The  cheek  of  Herbert  flushed,  his  eyes  lighted,  and  the 
blood  within  him  tingled  in  its  every  vein,  as  he  heard  the 
glorious  cry.  Again  and  again  did  the  sounds  swell  up- 
ward, and  roll  down  the  mountain.  Peal  on  peal,  torrent, 
eddies,  and  cataracts  of  tuneful  noise,  did  the  hounds  send 
rushing  and  rolling  out  into  the  resounding  air.  Onward  in 
swift  career  they  tore.  Now  flying  along  a  ridge,  now 
plunging  into  a  deep  ravine,  where  the  thick  balsam 
branches  half-smothered  their  clarion  cry;  now  streaming 
in  swiftest  race  down  a  steep  slope,  while  above,  the  air 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  165 

fairly  quivered,  torn  apart  and  sniveled  into  tuneful  frag- 
ments by  the  imperious  summons  of  the  dogs'  hot  throats, 
beneath. 

Thus  went  the  race.  And  with  feelings  which  only  a 
hunter  knows,  did  Herbert  sit  and  mark  its  changeful 
course, — holding  his  very  breath  to  listen,  when  the  sounds 
made  serial  angles,  and  expecting  that  each  turn  would 
bring  the  dogs'  mouths  toward  the  lake.  At  last,  the  buck, 
pressed  by  the  hounds,  doubled  short  upon  his  course,  — 
which  had  been  upward,  as  if  he  would  climb  the  crest, 
and  seek  refuge  in  the  western  lakes.  He  turned,  and  shot 
with  all  his  speed  along  the  very  runway  the  Old  Trapper 
had  mentioned,  straight  for  the  lake  and  the  ledge;  abreast 
of  which  Herbert,  intense  and  ready  for  his  appearance, 
sat.  Down,  down  he  came,  and  after  him  the  hounds.  It 
was  plain  to  Herbert  that  the  dogs  had  held  their  own  from 
the  start,  and  were  running  in  full  sight  of  their  game. 
Onward  and  downward  came  the  race.  Buck  aud  dogs  and 
noise  came  on  together.  The  mountain  flowed  with  sounds. 
The  steep  declivity  resounded  with  the  rush  of  the  vocal 
torrent.  To  north  and  south  the  echoes  barked  and  roared. 
The  owls  flew  up  into  the  dazzling  sun,  affrighted  by  the 
tempest  of  noises  that  swept  and  eddied  underneath  their 
gloomy  roosts.  The  ravens,  with  wavering  wings,  fluttered 
above  the  trees,  harshly  croaking.  The  white  gulls,  sailing 
on  circling  pinions  far  overhead,  screamed  their  shrill  inter- 
rogations to  each  other,  and  soared  yet  higher. 

Thus,  with  bay  of  hounds,  with  scream  and  croak  of  bird, 
and  volleying  echoes  pouring  down  straight   toward   the 


166  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

shore,  like  a  tornado's  flight,  came  on  the  hurrying  race. 
Soon  the  sound  of  parting  brush  was  heard,  of  crackliDg 
stems,  of  dead  wood  crashed  wildly  through,  of  vault,  and 
plunge,  and  all  the  noises  which  an  impetuous  race  down  a 
steep  mountain  side,  on  a  still  morning,  makes.  Nearer 
and  nearer  the  uproar  came ;  until  it  reached  the  very  limit 
of  the  brush,  and  breaking  through  the  interlacing  shrub- 
bery, with  antlers  laid  well  back,  eyes  on  tire,  tongue  hang- 
ing out,  froth  flying  from  his  open  mouth,  the  buck,  with  a 
hound  at  either  flank,  burst  out  upon  the  rock,  and  with  a 
mighty  leap  flung  himself  with  all  the  momentum  of  his 
flight  to  help,  full  thirty  feet  into  the  waters  of  the  lake : 
not  unaccompanied;  for  the  two  dogs  —  strong  in  struc- 
ture, and  brave  in  their  breeding,  with  courage  hot  as  their 
heated  blood,  —  took  water  as  boldly,  if  not  with  such 
length  of  leap  as  had  the  game,  and  whimpering  as  they 
swam,  still  held  their  swift  pursuit. 

In  the  canoe  Herbert  sat  motionless,  until  the  buck,  with 
plunging  and  nervous  leaps  through  the  level  water,  had 
covered  two-thirds  the  distance  that  lay  betwixt  the  ledge 
and  boat.  Then  the  rifle  jumped  to  his  cheek,  and  the 
quick  explosion  ripped  the  air  asunder  with  its  fierce  con- 
cussion. 

The  head  of  the  buck  dropped,  as  the  hammer  fell,  and 
lay  motionless ;  while  the  hounds,  giving  each  a  sharp, 
quick  bark,  turned  back,  and  swam  contentedly  towards 
the  shore. 

The  race  was  over,  and  a  brave  one  had  it  been.  Her- 
bert, having  lashed  his  rifle  to  its  fastenings,  paddled  to  the 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  167 

game,  feeling  that  the  evening  and  the  morning  had  given 
him  the  two  best  shots  he  had  ever  made,  and  the  two 
largest  sets  of  antlers  he  had  ever  seen. 

It  was  a  difficult  job.  to  ship  his  game ;  but  the  lake  was 
as  smooth  as  glass,  and  the  canoe  of  large  size,  and  Herbert 
had  taken  too  many  deer  from  the  water  not  to  know  the 
method  of  proceeding.  He  careened  the  canoe  well  over 
on  its  side,  and  laying  hold  of  the  buck  by  the  tail  and 
haunches,  lifted  him,  with  a  skillful  motion,  upward.  The 
hams  of  the  buck  were  already  above  the  surface,  and  level 
with  the  edge  of  the  canoe,  when,  with  a  quick  and  nervous 
energy  that  only  a  deer  can  exhibit,  he  delivered  a  kick 
with  his  hoofs  against  the  side,  which  stove  it  through,  as  if 
it  were  but  paper,  and  sent  Herbert  head-foremost  over  the 
horns  of  the  animal  into  the  water. 

The  position  of  Herbert  was  now  one  of  extreme  peril. 
The  bullet  had  struck  the  skull  of  the  deer,  but  at  such  an 
angle  that  it  had  not  penetrated  it,  but  glanced  upward  into 
the  air,  only  stunning  the  creature  for  a  moment.  The  in- 
stant that  the  head  of  Herbert  rose  to  the  surface,  which  it 
did  almost  within  reach  of  his  horns,  and  worse  yet,  of  his 
sharp-edged  hoofs,  the  buck,  with  a  snort  of  pain  and  rage, 
his  back  curved  and  bristling,  plunged  at  him.  Sudden  as 
had  been  the  catastrophe,  and  startling  as  was  the  peril, 
the  self-possession  of  Herbert  had  not  left  him ;  for  he  came 
to  the  surface,  knife  in  hand,  and  ready  for  the  rush  he 
knew  would  come.  As  the  creature  lunged  at  him,  by  a 
dexterous  movement  he  flung  himself  aside,  and  lifting  him- 
self in  the  water,  drove,  with  all  the  strength  of  his  arm, 


168  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

the  blade  downward,  aiming  at  the  root  of  the  neck.  But 
the  motion  of  the  buck  was  swifter  than  he  had  calculated 
for,  and  the  blow  falling  a  foot  behind  the  point  aimed  at, 
the  knife  struck  against  the  shoulder-blade  with  a  direct- 
ness and  force  which  parted  the  handle  from  the  hilt  and 
snapped  the  blade  short  off  at  the  middle.  A  sound  almost 
like  a  groan  escaped  the  young  man,  as  he  dashed  his 
wounded  hand,  lacerated  by  the  broken  fragments  of  the 
horn-handle,  into  the  water.  But  no  time  was  left  him  to 
consider,  for,  quick  as  a  flash,  the  deer  turned  and  again 
plunged  at  him.  For  several  minutes, the  unequal  contest 
raged.  The  garments  of  Herbert  were  pierced  and  torn  in 
a  dozen  places ;  the  flesh  of  his  cheek  was  opened  by  the 
sharp-pointed  prong  of  the  buck's  antlers ;  and  before  he 
could  lay  hold  of  his  neck,  or  get  along  side  of  him,  one  of 
his  sharp-edged  hoofs  had  lanced  across  his  chest  and  torn 
the  flesh  to  the  very  bone.  The  young  man  hesitated  no 
longer,  but  lifted  his  voice  with  all  the  force  given  him  by 
the  thought  of  his  peril,  and  shouted  till  the  startled  air 
rang  to  the  cry :  — 

"  John  Norton  !  —  John  Norton  !  —  help  ! " 
The  call  of  Henry  was  sent  forth  with  all  the  power  of  a 
man  from  whom  it  is  wrung  by  the  emergency  of  extreme 
peril.  The  cry  rose  into  the  air  with  a  volume  and  energy 
that  filled  the  hollow  atmosphere  with  waves  of  sound, 
rolled  far  down  the  lake,  and  smote  against  the  mountain 
side  with  such  directness  and  force,  that  twenty  echoes  gave 
it  back  with  startling  distinctness.  The  Trapper  was  well 
down  the  mountain  and  within  fifty  rods  of  the  shore,  when 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  16S 

the  terrible  call  of  his  young  companion, — whom  he  had 
grown  to  love  as  if  he  were  his  own  son  —  smote  upon  his 
ear.  Well  did  he  kuow  that  nothing  but  the  direst  extrem- 
ity could  have  extorted  a  call  for  assistance  from  Herbert 
—  much  less  such  a  cry  as  that.  Not  knowing  what  was 
the  cause  of  it,  nor  hesitating  an  instant,  he  dashed  for  the 
lake  with  a  recklessness  aud  velocity  which  would  have 
been  perilous  to  one  of  less  vigor  and  agility.  Over  pros- 
trate trees  and  boulders  he  leapt,  tore  his  way  through  a 
wind-fall,  as  if  he  embodied  the  violence  which  years  be- 
fore had  caused  it,  burst  through  opposing  thickets,  and 
with  a  mighty  leap  over  a  monstrous  pine  that  blocked  his 
way,  with  bared  head,  and  hair  streaming  behind  him,  and 
with  his  rifle  at  a  trail,  but  ready  for  action,  stood  upon  the 
rock.  The  scene  which  met  his  gaze  blanched  his  cheek  to 
the  whiteness  of  coming  death ;  for  there,  forty  rods  from 
the  rock  on  which  he  stood,  was  Herbert  struggling  with 
the  buck  in  the  water,  while  the  canoe  was  rods  away  and 
full  to  the  brim ;  and  to  make  it  more  startling,  the  Lad, 
who  was  pulling  with  all  his  might  toward  the  spot,  was  a 
half  mile  down  the  lake. 

A  single  glance  revealed  to  the  Trapper  the  true  state  of 
things,  and  showed  to  him  the  extreme  peril  of  his  com- 
panion ;  for  well  he  knew  the  desperate  strength  that  Her- 
bert was  putting  forth  to  avoid  the  horns  and  sharp-pointed 
hoofs  of  the  wounded  and  frenzied  creature  with  which, 
with  desperate  efforts,  he  was  contending ;  and  the  blood 
which  streamed  down  his  face,  plainly  visible  from  where 
the  Trapper  stood,  bore  witness  that  he  was  not  altogether 


170  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

unhurt.  He  hesitated  not  an  instant,  but  lifted  his  voice 
into  the  air  with  an  energy  of  utterance  which  sent  each 
word  with  the  momentum  of  a  cannon  ball  across  the  level 
water,  to  the  fast-coming  boat. 

"  Pull,  Lad,  for  the  love  of  God  !  "  shouted  the  Trapper, 
u  lengthen  yer  stroke  and  quicken  yer  gather,  or  yer  com- 
rade will  die  afore  yer  very  eyes !  Pull,  Lad  !  and  put  yer 
soul  into  yer  oars,  and  may  God  give  ye  strength  for  the 
deed  ye  must  do." 

The  stentorian  voice  of  the  Trapper  reached  the  ears  of 
the  Lad,  as  if  he  had  been  but  a  few  rods  away.  The  en- 
ergy of  the  appeal,  as  truly  as  the  revelation  of  peril  to 
Herbert  that  it  made,  broke  into  his  habitual  indifference, 
as  a  bomb  exploding  unexpectedly  in  the  inner  court  of  a 
secluded  palace  startles  those  within.  For,  although  he  had 
been  pulling  a  stroke  such  as  the  Trapper  had  never  seen 
pulled,  even  before  the  cry  had  reached  him,  yet  no  sooner 
had  the  call  of  the  old  man  sounded,  than,  as  if  power  had 
indeed  been  given  him  of  God  for  the  moment's  need,  the 
boat  actually  jumped  into  the  air  as  he  bent  to  his  stroke ; 
and  fairly  flew  over  the  water  as  he  swept  it  along.  The 
Trapper's  eyes  glowed,  as  he  saw  the  tremendous  stroke  of 
the  Lad,  for  he  knew  that  two  minutes  would  bring  his  boat 
to  Herbert's  side.  And  after  an  instant,  with  a  heart  full  of 
hope,  he  turned  his  gaze  from  the  on-coming  boat  toward 
his  companion  in  the  water ;  but  a  look  of  agony  swept 
into  his  face,  as  he  saw  that  Herbert  was  weakening,  and 
that  he  was  even  then  barely  able  to  keep  his  hold  on  the 
horns  of  the  buck. 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  171 

"  Hold  on,  Henry,  and  hold  up  a  leetle  longer,  for  the 
love  of  God,"  the  old  man  shouted,  "  the  Lad  is  sartinly 
pullin'  with  the  strength  of  Heaven  in  his  stroke,  and  will 
be  at  yer  side  in  a  minit.  Lie  close  to  the  cretur's  ribs : 
keep  one  hand  over  his  shoulder,  and  hang  to  his  horns 
with  the  other,  and  the  Lad  will  save  ye  yit." 

For  an  instant  there  was  no  reply.  Then  feebly  and 
faintly,  so  unlike  the  ordinary  tone  of  Herbert's  voice  that 
the  Trapper  started  as  if  an  electric  current  had  entered 
him,  as  his  ears  received  the  thin,  wavering  sound,  — feebly 
and  faintly  over  the  water  came  the  words,  steady  and  even 
in  tone,  but  low,  as  if  spoken  in  mortal  weakness :  — 

"  John  Norton,  shoot  the  buck  ! " 

"  Aye,  aye,  Henry,  I've  thought  of  it ;  but  ye  are  full 
forty  rods  from  where  I  stand,  and  the  lead  must  pass 
within  si£  inches  of  yer  head.  No,  no,  boy,  it  isn't  best, 
onless  yer  blood  is  oozin'  fast,  and  yer  strength  eenamost 
gone.  It's  a  picked  bullet  I've  got  in  the  right  barrel  of  my 
rifle,  —  praise  the  Lord  —  and  I  might  perhaps  do  it,  but 
my  eyes  aint  what  they  was  forty  years  ago,  and  the  odds 
are  agin  me ;  but  if  ye  can't  hold  on,  and  yer  jedgment  says 
it's  yer  only  chance  —  as  it  sartinly  is  if  ye  can't,  for  the 
buck  would  kill  ye  with  a  single  thrust  of  his  foot  if  ye  let 
go  —  I  say,  Henry,"  repeated  the  Trapper,  as  he  drew  back 
the  hammer  of  his  rifle,  and  pressed  the  trigger  to  the  set, 
*  if  ye  can't  hold  on,  and  yer  jedgment  says  it's  yer  only 
chance,  I'll  do  my  best,  and  may  the  Lord  in  his  marcy 
steady  me  for  the  deed.  So  if  ye  can't  hold  on,  say  the 
word,  and  John  Norton  will  shoot  for  yer  life :  and  his  own 


172  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

too,"  continued  the  old  man,  in  a  lower  tone,  speaking  to 
himself,  "  for  I  wouldn't  be  a  mi  nit  behind  the  boy,  if  he 
goes  to  the  jedgment  with  my  bullet  in  his  brain." 

A  moment  the  Trapper  waited  for  Herbert's  final  reply. 
His  face  was  white  as  ashes,  and  the  sweat  stood  in  beads 
on  his  forehead,  while  the  rifle  in  his  hand  trembled  like  a 
tamarack  in  the  wind ;  and  then,  from  over  the  water,  feeb- 
ler and  fainter  even  than  before,  came  the  same  calm,  steady 
tone ;  and  out  of  the  air  as  it  passed,  the  old  man's  listen- 
ing ear  could  catch  only  the  words  :  — 

"  Shoot  the  buck  ! " 

The  Trapper  hesitated  not  an  instant.  He  drew  himself 
to  his  full  height,  advanced  his  left  foot,  lifted  with  an  easy 
sweep  of  his  arm  his  rifle  into  the  air,  and  as  the  barrels 
dropped  into  his  extended  palm  his  cheek  settled  to  the 
stock,  and  his  eye  without  a  quiver  in  the  lid  ranged  along 
the  sights.  For  an  instant  the  rifle  lay  on  his  palm  as  mo- 
tionless as  if  fastened  in  an  invisible  vise,  and  then  a  fiery 
stream  spurted  from  the  muzzle,  and  the  sharp  crack  rang 
out  on  the  morning  air.  He  had  shot  for  a  life,  and  so  far 
as  skill  could  do,  had  saved  it ,  for  the  bullet,  passing  so 
near  the  head  of  Herbert  as  to  lift  a  lock  of  his  hair,  buried 
itself  in  the  buck's  brain  under  the  root  of  the  horns. 

The  Trapper  saw  Herbert  fall  away  from  the  deer — saw 
that  he  still  had  strength  enough  to  make  the  needed  mo- 
tions to  keep  himself  afloat,  and  then  he  turned  his  eyes  in 
the  direction  of  the  coming  boat.  It  was  within  twenty 
rods,  and  the  Lad  was  pulling  a  stroke  which  seemed  to  the 
Trapper  to  have  in  it  the  energy  of  more  than  mortal  power 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  173 

but  miraculous  as  it  was  in  its  length,  sweep,  and  quickness 
of  recovery,  the  body  of  the  oarsman  rose  and  sank  to  the 
motions  as  if  no  excitement  had  stirred  his  ordinary  simple 
composure,  and  the  long  blades  entered  and  left  the  level 
water  with  a  precision  and  finish  that  tossed  not  a  drop  of 
spray  into  the  air,  while  the  line  of  the  eddying  wake  astern, 
led  as  straight  from  the  spot  from  which  he  had  started 
far  down  the  lake,  to  the  body  of  Herbert,  as  a  line  could 
have  been  drawn  on  a  level  floor  by  skilled  direction.  The 
Lad  gave  three  more  strokes  and  then  dropping  his  oars  to 
a  trail  he  lifted  himself,  in  all  his  ungainly  height,  in  his 
boat  and  turned  his  eyes  forward,  searching  for  the  head 
and  body  of  his  friend ;  but  above  the  level  water  was  nei- 
ther body  nor  head  in  sight,  for  Herbert  had  disap- 
peared. 

"  Where  is  Henry  ?  "  asked  the  Lad  of  the  Trapper. 

The  Trapper  made  no  reply ;  indeed,  it  is  doubtful  if  he 
could,  for  his  tongue  clove  to  the  roof  of  his  mouth,  and 
his  rifle  dropped  from  his  hands  on  to  the  rock  at  his  feet 
as  if  it  had  been  only  useless  iron. 

"Where  is  Henry  V  repeated  the  Lad,  as  his  boat  glided 
on ;  but  before  the  words  had  fairly  left  his  lips  a  gleam 
came  into  his  face,  and  with  a  motion  quick  as  an  otter 
when  he  lifts  for  the  dive  in  the  midst  of  the  hounds,  he 
launched  his  body  into  the  depths  of  the  lake. 

The  feet  of  the  Lad  had  scarcely  disappeared  beneath 
the  surface,  before  the  Trapper,  with  a  mighty  leap  from 
the  rock  on  which  he  stood,  had  also  taken  the  water  and 
was  swimming  with  tremendous  strokes  toward  the  now 
empty  boat. 


CHAPTEE  V. 

THE  RESCUE. 

"One  that  I  saved  from  drowning."  —  Shakespeare. 

rpHE  Trapper  had  covered  half  the  distance  between  the 
shore  and  the  boat,  and  was  swimming  with  the 
strength  and  swiftness  of  one  swimming  for  a  life,  when 
the  head  and  shoulders  of  the  Lad  came  to  the  surface  as  a 
diver  emerges  from  the  depths  when  struggling  with  a 
weight.  As  the  old  man  saw  the  face  of  Herbert,  as  his 
head  lay  lifeless  on  the  bosom  of  the  Lad,  he  jumped  half 
his  length  out  of  the  water  in  the  eagerness  of  his  joy,  and 
shouted :  "  Ye  have  saved  him,  Lad !  Ye  have  saved  him  ! 
The  Lord  of  marcy  has  helped  ye,  and  ye  have  saved  yer 
comrade  !  Can  ye  hold  him  up  a  minit,  —  can  ye  hold  him, 
I  say,  till  I  can  reach  the  boat  and  bring  it  to  yer  side  ? " 

"  Of  course  I  can  hold  Henry  up,"  replied  the  Lad,  in  a 
simple,  quiet  tone,  as  if  he  were  only  doing  an  ordinary  ser- 
vice. "  He  had  got  a  good  ways  down  before  I  caught  up 
with  him,  but  I  got  hold  of  him  finally  and  fetched  him  up. 
I'm  a  little  short  of  breath,  for  you  called  so  loud  to  me 
that  I  knew  you  wanted  me  to  come  right  along,  and  so  I 
pulled  real  hard ;  but  you  needn't  worry  about  my  letting 
Henry  go,  for  I'm  a  first-rate  swimmer,  and  don't  feel  tired 
a  bit." 


THE   MAN   TIIAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  175 

"  Pulled  hard  ? "  quoted  the  Trapper,  as  he  laid  hold  of 
the  stern  of  the  boat,  which  he  had  reached,  and  with  a 
strong  skillful  movement  lifted  himself  astride  of  it,  when 
he  instantly  seized  the  paddle  and  started  it  toward  the 
Lad,  "  I  think  ye  did  pull  hard.  Ye  have  did  what  no  other 
man  John  Norton  ever  seed  could  do ;  and  the  Lord,  whose 
eyes  has  been  on  this  lake  this  morn,  will  remember  ye, 
Lad,  when  he  gives  his  rewards  to  them  who  did  well  on 
the  arth ;  and  I  sartinly  hope  I  may  be  there  to  give  my 
idees  of  yer  conduct,  and  put  a  few  words  in  as  to  yer 
stroke.  I  don't  believe  the  Lord  would  refuse  to  hear  the 
jedgment  of  an  old  man  who  seed  the  thing  from  begin nin' 
to  eend,  either.  There,  Lad,"  continued  the  Trapper,  as  he 
swept  the  boat  alongside  and  checked  it  with  a  reverse 
stroke  of  his  paddle,  "  give  the  boy  to  me,  and  do  ye  swim 
to  the  other  side  and  steady  the  boat  while  I  lift  him  in." 
So  saying,  the  old  man  passed  his  strong  arms  under  the 
shoulders  of  Herbert  as  tenderly  as  a  mother  might  prepare 
to  lift  a  sleeping  child,  while  his  eyes  fixed  themselves  on 
the  pallid  face  with  an  intensity  as  if  they  would  penetrate 
the  mortal  frame  to  see  if  the  soul  still  hovered  within. 

The  Lad  promptly  obeyed  the  old  man's  directions,  and 
in  an  instant  the  body  of  Herbert  lay  stretched  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  boat,  while  his  head  was  supported  by  the  lap 
of  the  Trapper.  In  another  instant  the  Lad,  with  surpris- 
ing agility,  climbed  over  the  bow  of  the  boat,  and,  sliding 
into  his  seat,  laid  hold  of  the  oars,  and  with  a  long,  strong 
stroke,  started  toward  the  point  which  they  had  left  scarcely 
an  hour  before,  and  above  which  a  thin  volume  of  blue 


176  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

smoke  from  their  mouldering  camp-fire  .was  still  ascending. 

The  Trapper  had,  in  the  meantime,  unbuttoned  the  collar 
of  Herbert's  shirt,  and  laid  his  hand  over  the  heart,  search- 
ing for  evidence  that  life  still  held  her  uncertain  residence 
within. 

"  You  don't  think  Henry  is  going  to  die,  do  you  ? "  said 
the  Lad,  as  he  laid  to  his  stroke  till  the  long  blades  of  his 
oars  bent  to  the  pressure. 

"  No,  Lad,  no ;  not  if  the  Lord  is  mindful  of  the  livin'. 
The  boy  is  too  young  to  die,  and  the  arth  needs  him  ;  for 
his  gifts  is  wonderful,  and  I  have  heerd  said  that  thousands 
love  him  in  the  settlements.  And  I  know,"  he  continued, 
"  that  there's  an  Old  Trapper  here  in  the  woods  who  loves 
him,  as  he  hasn't  loved  man  for  forty  year,  and  never 
thought  to  love  agin  this  side  the  great  Clearin'.  No,  no; 
he  mustn't  die.  I've  reckoned  on  the  boy's  company  for 
many  a  year  yit  when  he  comes  to  the  woods,  and  conceited 
that  perhaps  the  Lord  of  Marcy  would  let  him  be  nigh  when 
me  and  the  hound  start  on  the  trail  that  leads  into  the  Val- 
ley. Take  him  by  the  feet,  Lad,  lift  easy,  and  we  will  bear 
him  to  camp.  Yis,  yis,  I  know  now,  why  the  Lord  brought 
us  three  together  at  the  pond  of  the  beavers." 

While  the  Trapper  had  been  thus  half  talking  to  himself, 
the  boat  had  run  in  on  to  the  beach  off  the  point,  and  the 
two  men,  by  a  common  movement,  had  lifted  Herbert  in 
their  arms  and  borne  him  to  the  fire. 

For  nearly  half  an  hour  the  two  worked  over  their  inan- 
imate companion,  striving  to  bring  the  departed  breath 
back  to  his  motionless  nostrils,  and  to  start  the  sluggish 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  177 

current  of  his  chilled  blood  to  its  accustomed  movement ; 
but  his  limbs  still  remained  limp,  his  eyes  closed,  his  nos- 
trils inactive,  and  the  features  set  in  the  quiet,  rigid  smooth- 
ness which  marks  the  countenance  of  one  who  has  passed 
forever  from  the  mortal  tenement  which  his  presence  had 
once  made  animate  and  lovely.  Still  above  the  heart  the 
skin  was  warm,  and  the  palm  lightly  placed  over  it  could 
interpret  the  faintest  of  movements  within.  It  was  as  if 
the  spirit,  called  suddenly  away,  still  lingered  with  one  foot 
on  the  threshold  to  take  one  more  last  and  tender  look  at 
the  loved  home  it  was  compelled  to  leave  forever.  The 
face  of  the  Old  Trapper  was  grave  with  the  gravity  of  one 
who,  while  determined  to  hope  on,  nevertheless  feels  that 
one  by  one  the  evidences  which  warrant  hope  are  failing 
him,  and  that  he  will  soon  be  standing  in  the  presence  of 
an  overwhelming  calamity ;  while  the  countenance  of  the 
Lad,  as  he  came  and  went  on  his  hurried  errands,  as  di- 
rected by  the  Trapper,  who,  naturally  from  his  age  and  ex- 
perience had  assumed  the  management  of  the  case,  showed 
the  agitation  of  one  through  whose  dull  senses  the  sharp 
edge  of  a  dreadful  fear  was  slowly  but  surely  making  its 
way. 

"  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  in  a  voice  so  hollow  and  solemn 
that  the  one  he  addressed  started,  while  his  hand  that  was 
holding  a  cup  of  warming  water  over  the  fire,  shook  and 
trembled ;  u  Lad,  I  fear  that  the  boy  is  goin',  and  that  you 
and  me  will  be  here  with  the  dead  afore  the  shadows  of  the 
mornin'  are  shortened." 

"  John  Norton,"  said  the  Lad,  "  God  won't  let  Henry  die 


178  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

if  we  ask  him  not  to  ;  for  the  Bible  says  :  l  Ask,  -  and  -  it  - 
shall  -  be  -  given  —  seek,  -  and  -  ye  -  shall  -  find  —  knock,  - 
and  -  it  -  shall  -  be  -  opened ; '  and,  if  you  say  so,  I  will  go 
back  of  the  lodge  and  ask  Him  to  make  Henry  live.  I 
know  I'm  not  wise  and  don't  know  much,  and  I  suppose  a 
great  many  folks  would  laugh  at  me  if  I  should  try  to  pray, 
but  I  know  what  I  want  God  to  do  to  Henry,  and  I  guess 
he  can  understand  me,  even  if  I  do  spell  out  the  words, 
and  get  stuck  sometimes  on  the  big  ones.  Shall  I  go  and 
try,  John  Norton  ? " 

"  Yis,  yis,  Lad,"  replied  the  Trapper,  while  his  voice  shook, 
and  the  great  tears  came  into  his  eyes  and  rolled  down  his 
weather-beaten  cheek,  "  pass  me  the  cup  with  the  brandy 
in  it,  and  then  do  ye  go  back  of  the  lodge  and  tell  the  Lord 
the  best  ye  can  of  yer  troubles,  and  ask  him  to  give  us  a 
lift  in  our  endeavors ;  and  put  the  case  before  Him  as  strong 
as  ye  can,  Lad,  and  don't  forgit  to  spell  in  all  the  Scriptur' 
ye  remember,  especially  those  varses  where  he  has  prom- 
ised to  help  the  children  of  arth  when  peril  is  nigh.  An' 
while  ye  pray  I  will  keep  rubbin'  and  pourin'  the  hot  drink 
into  him,  an'  it  may  be,  betwixt  us  both,  with  the  help  of 
the  Lord,  an'  the  drink,  an'  the  rubbin',  we'll  fetch  Henry 
back  to  the  land  o'  the  livin'." 

The  Lad  did  as  the  old  Trapper  had  directed.  He  poured 
the  last  drop  of  brandy  in  the  flask  into  the  heated  water, 
passed  the  cup  to  the  old  man  and  then,  with  a  face  to 
which  absolute  trust  and  undoubted  hope  lent  illumination, 
he  retired  behind  the  lodge  and  kneeling  down  on  the  stem- 
matted  sod,  he  linked  his  awkward  fingers  together,  and 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  179 

lifting  his  guileless  face  upward  he  closed  his  eyes  and  with 
many  a  stammer,  but  with  directness  of  entreaty  and  earn- 
estness of  faith  which  kept  his  speech  straight  to  the  line 
of  his  wish,  prayed :  — 

"  Father  -  in  -  heaven,  -  mother  -  told  -  me  -  to  -  always  - 
call  -  you  -  Father,  - 1  -  want  -  you  -  to  -  hear  -  me  -  while  - 1 

-  tell  -  you  -  what  - 1  -  want.   Henry  -  is  -  dying  -  and  -  we-both 

-  love  -  Henry,  -  and  -  you  -  can  -  save  -  him  -  as  -  well  -  a3 

-  not,  -  for  -  you  -  art  -  able  -  to  -  do  -  anything.    The  -  Saviour 

-  told  -  us  -  that  -  whatsoever  -  ye  -  ask  -  of  -  the  -  Father  - 
in  -  my  -  name  -  that  -  will  -  he  -  do  -  unto  -  you.  I  -  and  - 
John  -  Norton  -  ask  -  you  -  to  -  bring  -  Henry  -  back  -  to  - 
life,  -  now,  -  right  -  off.  It  -  is  -  written,  -  according  -  to  - 
thy  -  faith  -  be  -  it  -  unto  -  you  -  and  -  I  -  have  -  faith,  •  I 
don't  -  doubt  -  a  -  bit,  - 1  -  know  -  you  -  will  -  bring  -  Henry 
to.    0  -  Lord,  -  thou  -  hast  -  been  -  our  -  dwelling  -  place  -in 

-  all  generations.    Thou  -  art  -  a  -  present-  help  -  in  -  times 

-  of  -  trouble.    Establish  -  thou  -  the  -  works  -  of  -  our  -  hands 

-  establish  -  thou  -  it.  Help,  -  Lord  -  for  -  our  -  strength  - 
faileth.  Deliver  -  us  -  from  -  evil  -  and  -  thine  -  shall  -  be  - 
the  -  glory  -  forever." 

The  Lad  had  got  so  far,  and  as  he  had  gone  on  in  his  sim- 
ple, laborious,  but  accurate  and  direct  way  of  petition,  his 
face  had  changed  by  reason  of  a  glow,  and  sweet,  fine  light 
that  had  come  into  it  and  spread  in  softest  radiance  over 
his  upturned  countenance  until  his  poor,  simple  face  actually 
shone  as  those  of  old  who  talked  with  God.  The  Spirit 
which  is  not  of  man,  and  which  finds  its  home  in  the  hum- 
blest breast  and  can  give  wisdom  to  the  feeble  minded,  had 


180  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

entered  and  filled  his  soul  with  its  Own  fine  fervors ;  and  to 
what  passion  of  entreaty  it  might  have  lifted  him  can  be 
known  only  to  him  who  knows  to  the  full  its  exalted  and 
sublime  energies,  which  out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  aud 
sucklings  have  perfected  praise ;  but  at  this  point  the  voice 
of  the  Trapper  interrupted  him. 

"  Lad,  Lad,  hold  on  and  come  here !  The  Lord  has  heerd 
ye,  for  the  blood  is  sartinly  stirriu'  and  the  sperit  of  the 
boy  has  come  back  to  the  body,  an'  life  is  movin'  in  his 
members.  Hurry,  Lad,  an'  see  the  answer  to  yer  prayer. 
Be  quick  or  the  Lord  will  be  here  ahead  of  ye." 

The  words  were  barely  out  of  the  Trapper's  mouth  before 
the  Lad,  with  the  beautiful  light  still  shiuing  in  his  face,  was 
kneeling  at  the  feet  of  Herbert  and  gazing  with  steady  yet 
glowing  eyes  into  the  pale  face,  into  which  the  slightest 
possible  flush  had  already  come. 

Thus  Herbert,  with  the  Trapper  still  holding  with  sup- 
porting hands  his  head,  with  the  Lad  kneeling  at  his  feet 
and  the  hounds  standing  on  either  side  of  him  in  grave  at- 
tention, lay,  while  the  warmth  of  renewed  life  grew  within 
his  breast  and  sent  its  reviving  fervor  through  the  chilled 
currents  of  his  veins. 

In  a  moment  a  quiver  ran  through  his  frame,  his  chest 
rose  to  a  full  inspiration,  his  eyes  slowly  opened,  and  fixing 
them  first  on  the  Lad,  and  then  on  the  face  of  the  Trapper, 
his  lips  moved  slightly  and  he  said  in  a  tone  barely  above  a 
whisper :  — 

"  Old  man,  where  am  If" 

"  In  the  land  of  the  livin',  boy,  in  the  land  of  the  livin' 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  181 

praise  God ! n  responded  the  Trapper.  "  In  the  land  of  the 
livin'  and  here  on  Tomahawk  Pint,  with  the  Lad  at  yer  feet 
and  the  pups  on  either  side,  and  myself  here  at  yer  head,; , 
and  now  take  a  swallow  more  of  the  drink  and  then  we'll 
tuck  ye  away  in  the  blankets  and  pile  the  hot  stuns  round 
ye,  for  ye  have  had  an  onmarciful  soakin',  and  been  in  a 
scrimmage  which  taxed  ye  like  a  clinch  with  a  Huron,  and 
ye  need  rest  and  warmth,  for  sleep  and  heat  is  the  best  doc- 
tor in  the  world  to  one  who  has  been  in  a  tussle  and  come 
out  weak  and  sore  as  ye  are.  I  warrant  ye  will  be  frisky 
as  a  young  pup  arter  ye  have  had  a  good,  long  sleep." 

It  was  past  midday  when  Herbert  awoke,  and  rolling 
himself  out  of  the  blankets  in  which  he  was  swathed  from 
head  to  foot,  and  shoving  aside  several  of  the  heated  stones 
which  had  been  placed  in  a  row  on  either  side  of  his  body, 
rose  to  a  sitting  posture,  and  looked  about  him  as  a  man 
just  awaking  from  a  vivid  dream.  His  sleep  had  been  such 
as  the  strong  and  healthy  experience  after  complete  ex- 
haustion— an  oblivious  slumber,  which  had  blotted  so  many 
hours  from  his  life,  —  a  chasm  stretched  across  the  plain  of 
consciousness,  deep  and  wide,  whose  either  side  was  uncon- 
nected with  the  other  by  even  the  filament  of  a  dream.  On 
the  other  side  of  the  fire,  some  distance  away,  the  Trapper 
and  the  Lad  were  seated  talking  in  subdued  tones  and  cast- 
ing an  occasional  glance  toward  the  spot  where  their  com- 
rade was  slumbering.  The  hounds  lay  stretched  side  by 
side  in  the  sound  sleep  of  dogs  resting  after  a  race.  The 
three  rifles  were  leaning  against  a  small  pole  a  few  feet 
from  the  fire  in  such  a  position  that  the  heat  might  best 


182  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

penetrate  the  barrels.  In  a  moment  Herbert  took  in  the 
position  of  things  and  with  a  light  laugh  said  :  — 

"  You  didn't  mean  to  bake  me,  did  you,  friends  ? " 

"  Not  egsactly,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  but  we  did  mean 
to  heat  ye  up  pritty  well,  Henry;  leastwise,  we  sartinly 
meant  to  dry  ye  out  and  season  ye  a  bit,  for  ye  was  mighty 
well  soaked,  I  tell  ye,  and  we  thought  a  good  sweatin' 
would  open  the  seams  and  let  the  dampness  out  of  ye,  for 
ye  was  eenamost  waterlogged  when  the  Lad  fished  ye  up 
from  the  lake,  and  so  we  fenced  ye  in  with  the  heated  stuns, 
and  between  them  and  the  fire  and  the  warmth  of  yer  body 
the  blankets  have  been  smokiu'  like  a  dish-cloth  in  the  sun. 
Now,  boy,  how  do  ye  feel,  and  what  more  shall  we  do  for 
ye?" 

"I  feel  first-rate,"  Herbert  replied,  "save  that  my  chest 
smarts  as  if  a  hot  gridiron  was  tied  across  it,  and  my  right 
hand  here  is  puffed  up  like  a  toad-stool.  Have  you  got  the 
buck  from  the  water,  and  where  is  my  rifle  ? " 

"  The  buck  is  in  the  boat,  and  he's  a  big  un  too,  and  there 
is  yer  rifle  clean,  and  dry  from  muzzle  to  breech-pin,  ready 
for  the  powder ;  fori  said  to  the  Lad  that  I  knowed  the 
fust  thing  ye  would  ax  us  about  would  be  the  leetle  gun, 
for  I  know  yer  love  for  the  piece,  and  it  desarves  all  the 
care  ye  give  it,  for  two  truer  barrels  was  never  spliced  to- 
gether. My  ears  could  tell  the  crack  of  it  among  a  thou- 
sand ;  and  now  what  shall  we  do,  for  ye  are  captain  of  this 
squad,  and  me  and  the  Lad  wait  for  yer  orders  ? " 

"  I  think,"  Herbert  replied,  "  you  had  better  skin  the 
buck,  and  save  his  hide  and  head,  but  the  body  burn  or 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  183 

bury,  for  I  never  wish  to  see  it,  much  less  taste  a  morsel  of 
it.  Then  cook  us  a  rousing  dinner,  for  I  am  as  hungry  as  a 
shark ;  and  after  we  have  eaten  our  fill,  I  propose  that  you 
fix  me  up  some  kind  of  a  bed  in  the  bottom  of  the  boat, 
and  we  will  go  on  toward  the  Saranacs,  for  day  after  to- 
morrow is  the  boat  race,  and  although  I  don't  think,  by  the 
way  I  feel  that  I  shall  pull  an  oar  in  a  month,  yet  you  and 
the  Lad  can  enter,  and  I  can  see  the  fun  as  an  outsider." 

"  I  thiuk  ye  talk  like  a  gineral,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  Her- 
bert ended.  "  I  had  sot  my  heart  on  seeing  you  and  the 
Lad  pull  agin  those  Saranacers,  but  ye  are  in  no  condition 
to  handle  the  ash,  for  sartin,  but  the  Lad  is,  and  he  can 
larn  them  a  lesson  they  wont  forgit,  or  I'm  mistaken ;  and 
if  I  can  find  a  good  boat  —  though  my  gifts  lie  more  in  the 
direction  of  the  paddle  than  the  row-locks, — yet,  if  the 
Lad  wont  pull  onless  I  do  —  and  he  says  he  wont,  —  I  will 
try  the  boastin'  chaps  a  lick,  and  if  I  can  only  git  the  kink 
of  the  Lad's  swing,  and  the  length  of  his  sweep,  I  will  show 
'em  what  an  old  man  can  do,  who  boated  in  these  waters 
afore  their  fathers  was  born."  So  saying,  the  Trapper,  with 
the  Lad,  rose  from  the  log,  and  addressed  himself  to  the 
preparation  of  the  meal. 

The  sun  had  passed  the  meridian  when  the  boat,  with  the 
Lad  at  the  oars,  the  Trapper  at  the  paddle,  and  Herbert 
lying  at  length  on  a  soft  couch  of  balsam  and  cedar  boughs, 
with  the  two  hounds  at  his  feet,  shoved  out  from  Tomahawk 
Point,  and  started  down  the  lake.  It  was  such  a  day  as 
can  be  seen  nowhere  in  the  world  save  amid  this  forest  of 
the  North,  and  from  no  point  of  view  to  such  advantage  as 


184  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

from  a  boat  as  it  glides  easily  along  on  its  course  through 
the  middle  of  one  of  its  larger  lakes. 

The  water  was  as  smooth  as  if  no  wave  had  ever  rolled 
across  its  tranquil  surface,  save  where  a  loon  in  diving,  or 
in  rising  from  his  dive,  sent  from  himself,  as  the  living  cen- 
ter, an  undulating  circumference  outward.  On  either  side 
the  shores  lay  in  deep  repose,  as  if  the  very  trees  were 
sleeping  in  delicious  trance.  Over  them  the  mellow  haze 
of  autumn  was  spread  wide-cast  as  the  peace  of  heaven. 
Above,  the  mountains  rose,  with  their  peaks  cutting  the 
cooler  air,  bathed  in  the  blue  atmosphere.  The  islands 
looked,  from  the  distance,  as  if  they  were  floating  on  the 
water  —  huge  rafts  of  invisible  timber  freighted  with  moss- 
covered  rocks,  evergreen  shrubbery,  and  near  their  centers 
with  great  pines.  Around  the  edges  of  several,  the  white 
birches,  with  their  yellow  leaves,  stood  out  in  bold  relief 
against  the  surrounding  green.  The  air  was  mellow  and 
soft,  and  scented  with  the  odors  of  ripened  leaves  and  dying 
grasses,  while  now  and  then  the  quickened  nostril  caught 
the  smell  of  odorous  smoke  blown  from  some  distant  camp- 
fire.  Overhead,  the  white  gulls  wheeled  in  snowy  circles 
lazily.  In  the  upper  sky  the  falcons  soared  on  even  wing. 
And  now  and  then,  higher  yet,  the  watchful  eye  would  catch 
the  sight  of  darker  and  lengthier  pinions,  and  follow  the 
majestic  movement  of  the  bald  eagle,  as,  on  stately  and 
motionless  vans,  he  swung  around  in  his  serial  circles. 

Through  such  an  enchanting  scene,  and  as  the  living, 
watchful  center  of  it,  our  three  friends  moved  along,  the 
Lad  pulling  a  long,  easy  stroke,  and  the  Trapper  keeping 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  185 

time  with  his  paddle.  They  had  proceeded  on  their  course 
a  full  mile  before  either  spoke  a  word  and  then  the  Old 
Trapper  in  a  low  tone  said  :  — 

"  Many  he  the  seasons  I  have  passed  in  the  woods  sence 
I  struck  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Horicon,  more  than  three- 
score year  agone,  and  many  be  the  men  I  have  seen  fall  by 
my  side,  and  many  be  the  narrer  escapes  I  have  had  from 
death  by  bullet  and  water  both,  but  I  tell  ye,  Henry,  I  never 
seed  a  man  delivered  from  greater  peril  than  you  was  in 
this  mom,  and  the  Lad's  rowin'  and  divin'  saved  ye  for 
sartin',  onless,  as  it  seems  reasonable  to  do,  ye  set  a  share 
down  to  his  prayin',  for  arter  he  had  fished  ye  from  the  lake 
yer  sperit  was  as  near  gone  as  it  could  be  and  not  be  actally 
in  the  jedgment.    Yis,  the  Lad  sartinly  saved  ye." 

"  I  hope  I  did  help,"  said  the  Lad,  "  for  it  would  be  awful 
to  have  Henry  drown  with  both  of  us  in  sight.  I  don't 
know  what  we  could  have  done  had  he  died ;  but  I  don't 
think  my  rowing  or  diving  would  have  done  any  good  had 
it  not  been  for  your  shooting  the  buck,  John  Norton ;  I 
think  your  shooting  saved  Henry,  and  I  don't  see  how  you 
could  have  shot  so  well.  I  am  sure  my  hand  would  have 
shook  dreadfully." 

"The  sarcumstances  was  agin  me,  for  sartin,  Lad,"  re- 
sponded the  Trapper,  for  the  distance  was  too  fur  for  close 
work,  and  the  buck  was  mighty  lively,  but  the  bullet  was  a 
good  one  and  the  air  so  clear  that  I  could  actally  see  the 
curl  in  the  cretur's  hair  at  the  roots  of  the  horns  when  I 
sot  my  eye  into  the  sights ;  and  Henry,  weak  as  he  was, 
knowed  enough  to  lop  his  head  aside  a  leetle  to  make  a 


186  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

path  for  the  lead,  and  the  Lord  used  my  gifts,  and  the  habit 
of  sixty  year  of  shootin'  in  cloud  and  shine,  in  deadly 
scrimmage  and  playful  practice  when  the  horn  was  full  and 
lead  plenty,  to  furder  his  parposes  of  marcy,  jest  as  he  used 
my  rubbin'  and  the  brandy  to  help  the  Lad  out  in  his  prayin' 
and  Scriptur  sayin',  back  of  the  lodge." 

"  Don't  you  believe,"  interrupted  the  Lad  —  "  Don't  you 
believe,  John  Norton,  that  God  can  do  anything  he  wants  to 
without  our  helping  him  a  bit  ?  " 

"  Sartinly,  Lad,  sartinly,  if  he  only  had  a  mind  to,  for  I 
have  seed  enough  of  his  power  when  he  put  out  his  strength 
amid  the  scenes  of  natur'  to  conceit  he  can  do  anything. 
For  I  have  seen  the  wind  cut  a  swath  through  the  woods  as 
a  man  in  the  settlements  cuts  a  path  through  the  grass 
with  his  scythe ;  and  I  have  seed  the  frost  pry  up  acres  of 
rocks  and  sile  with  the  trees  all  standin'  in  them  and  slide 
em  down  a  mountain  as  if  they  were  on  greased  skids  ; 
and  I  heerd  a  man,  who  was  a  furiner,  say  once,  that  in  his 
country  at  times  the  very  arth  under  one's  feet  got  onsteady 
and  shook  like  a  half-breed  with  the  ager,  ontil  a  man 
couldn't  keep  his  legs ;  but  I  have  my  doubts  on  that  pint, 
and  I  told  him  so  to  his  face,  for  it  don't  seem  reasonable 
that  the  arth,  which  hasn't  any  bowels  or  narves,  should 
have  any  sech  kind  of  spasms,  or  git  coliky  like.  Still,  if 
the  Lord  raaly  set  about  it  in  earnest  it  may  be  he  could 
make  the  very  arth  quiver  like  a  human  bein'  in  pain  ;  but 
the  arth  is  a  big  thing,  and  can't  be  handled  round  careless 
by  anybody,  as  I  conceit." 

"  But,"  again  interrupted  the  Lad,  "  don't  you  think  that 
God  can  do  anything  without  our  helping  ? " 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  187 

"  Well,  no,  Lad,  if  ye  want  my  raal  idee  on  the  matter,  I 
don't,"  returned  the  Trapper.  "  Leastwise,  he  seems  willin' 
to  jine  works  with  his  creturs,  I  notice,  when  he  has  any 
special  job  on  hand,  that  needs  raal  arnest  and  lively  work 
to  git  it  done  in  time  to  answer  his  purpose.  Now,  Henry's 
scrimmage  with  the  buck  is  a  case  in  p'int.  For  Henry  had 
sartinly  got  into  a  pritty  tight  fix,  if  I  am  any  jedge,  and 
if  he  was  to  be  saved  it  had  got  to  be  done  in  a  jedicious 
and  lively  manner.  So  the  Lord  jined  works  with  ye  and 
ye  gifts,  and  ye  sartinly  did  yer  full  share,  for  ye  pulled 
like  all  possessed ;  and  how  ye  got  yer  feet  into  the  air  so 
quick  considerin'  the  length  of  yer  legs,  is  wonderful,  and 
can  be  accounted  for  only  on  the  ground  that  divin'  is  one 
of  yer  gifts  —  and  ye  yerself  has  said  that  the  bullet  I  druv 
in  under  the  buck's  horns,  helped  matters  considerably." 

"  But,  but,"  exclaimed  the  Lad,  feeling  he  was  being  out- 
reasoned,  but  none  the  less  steadfast  in  his  simple  faith, 
"  don't  you  think  the  prayer  did  any  good  ?  " 

"Yis,  sartinly,  Lad,"  promptly  replied  the  Trapper,  "I 
think  ye  are  gifted  in  that  way,  and  that  the  Lord  heerd  ye, 
but,"  continued  the  old  man,  as  if  he  feared  he  had  made  a 
fatal  concession,  and  in  common  with  all  theologians  was 
inclined  to  maintain  his  point,  right  or  wrong  — "  but  ye 
must  remember  that  yer  prayer  was  well  mixed  in  with  my 
rubbin',  not  to  speak  of  the  stimulant  and  hot  stuns.  No, 
no,  Lad,  the  Lord'  couldn't  have  got  along  without  yer  pullin' 
and  divin',  and  the  bullet  and  the  rubbin',  anyhow.  Could 
he,  Henry  ? " 

The  only  reply  Herbert  made  was  to   move  his  hand 


188  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

slightly  under  his  cheek ;  for,  lulled  by  the  easy  dip  of  the 
oars  as  they  came  and  went  in  their  measured  stroke,  and 
perhaps  by  the  murmur  of  the  low,  earnest  voices  above 
him,  yielding  to  some  subtle  but  unknown  law  of  reception 
and  impartment  by  which  the  slumberous  peace  of  sur- 
rounding nature  entered  into  and  possessed  his  senses,  the 
young  man  had  sunk  into  a  restful  sleep. 

And  thus  past  the  anchored  islands,  with  their  walled 
rocks ;  past  the  mouth  of  sleeping  bays  j  past  beaches  of 
golden  sand ;.  through  the  yellow  autumnal  haze,  the  boat 
moved  on,  until  it  entered  the  easy  flowing  stream  of  the 
beautiful  Eacquette,  then  with  all  its  loveliness  unmarred 
by  the  devastating  hand  of  human  selfishness.  Thence  up- 
ward against  the  easy  current  the  boat  sailed  on.  Up  long 
stretches  of  level  water,  whose  surface  was  strewn  thick 
with  leaves  that  flamed  with  color,  while  underneath  the 
depths  reflected  the  fiery  hues  of  the  overhanging  maples, 
—  up  over  the  glancing  rifts  whose  first  noisy  ripples  awoke 
the  sleeper,  and  sailing  in  easy  curve  around  the  great 
bends  the  boat  went  forward  on  its  course,  until,  as  the 
shadows  began  to  darken  on  wood  and  stream,  it  reached  a 
spot  where  the  pines  came  to  the  water's  edge,  and  stood 
like  great  sentinels,  with  arms  at  rest  along  the  bank,  as  if 
within  their  dark  recesses  the  Genii  of  the  woods  had  their 
pine-guarded  home.  Here  the  three  men  landed,  and  with 
rapid  movements  made  ready  for  the  night  whose  dark 
wings  were  fast  drawing  their  gloom-bringing  flight  be- 
tween the  earth  and  sky. 


CHAPTEE  VI. 

THE  OVATION. 

"  His  life  was  gentle,  and  the  elements 
So  mixed  in  him,  that  Nature  might  s^and  up 
And  say  to  all  the  world,  This  was  a  man." 

Shakespeare. 

TTWENING  in  the  woods,  on  a  still  September  night.  In 
front  a  river,  which  sends  its  current  deep  and  dark, 
with  steady  pressure,  against  the  base  of  a  hill,  as  if  it 
would  undermine  its  broad  foundation  and  float  it  off.  A 
beach  of  sand  where  the  bend  in  the  bank  curves  sharpest. 
Ten  feet  above,  a  narrow,  level  stretch  of  land  —  a  natural 
terrace  —  with  great  pines  growiDg  thereon,  whose  trunks 
rise  clean  of  limbs,  and  straight  as  the  masts  of  a  ship,  full 
eighty  feet,  then  tuft  themselves  in  heaviest  foliage.  From 
the  inner  edge  of  the  level  space  the  hill  lifts,  steep  and 
far,  a  thousand  feet ;  but  even  to  the  ridge  the  pines  grow 
thick  and  strong.  On  the  level  bank  a  camp-fire  burning 
brightly,  and  with  an  energy  that  lifts  the  flame  in  a  fiery 
pillar,  ten  feet  upward.  The  light  and  shade  play  ghostly 
hide-and-seek  amid  the  distant  trees  and  neighboring  thick- 
ets. Above  the  river,  through  the  opening  in  the  trees 
made  by  its  width  from  shore  to  shore,  a  space  of  sky, 
dusky  and  dim,  in  which  large  stars  bum  and  glow  as  dia- 
monds set  in  jet  against  a  swarthy  forehead.    Around  the 


190  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

fire,  our  three  friends,  engaged  in  conversation,  their  voices 
pitched  to  a  low  key,  but  animated  and  earnest  in  tone. 

"  I  tell  ye,  lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  ye  oughter  pull  with- 
out me  j  rowin'  comes  nateral  to  ye,  and  yer  stroke  is  sar- 
tinly  wonderful.  I  never  seed  anything  like  it.  Ye  can 
walk  a  boat  along  for  half  a  mile,  quicker  than  any  other 
man  livin',  if  I  am  any  jedge ;  but  ye  don't  look  to  me  as  if 
ye  was  put  together  for  a  long  race,  and  I  conceit  a  four- 
mile  stretch  would  blow  ye,  for  ye  are  mighty  light  in  the 
middle,  and  yer  chest  is  too  thin  by  half.  If  ye  had  the 
shoulders  of  Henry,  here,  I  would  wager  my  last  horn  of 
powder,  and  my  bullet-mould  into  the  bargain,  that  ye  could 
beat  'em  at  any  distance  ;  for  I  have  seed  Henry  fetch  his 
boat,  loaded  deep  at  that,  for  three  miles  agin  a  wind  that 
whitened  the  lake  from  shore  to  shore,  and  never  weaken 
on  a  stroke.  What  do  ye  say,  lad,  —  can  ye  pull  a  long 
course  if  the  rogues  set  us  one  ? " 

"  I  don't  want  to  pull  at  all,  John  Norton,  nor  go  nigh 
them,  for  I  know  they  will  laugh  at  me  and  call  me  names, 
because  I  aint  handsome  and  smart.  The  last  time  I  went 
out  with  my  skins,  they  bothered  me  dreadfully  about  my 
legs  and  hands,  and  hadn't  it  been  for  Sport,  I  don't  know 
but  they  would  have  hurt  me ;  but  if  they  touched  me  even 
so  much  as  with  a  fish-pole,  Sport  showed  his  teeth  at 
them.  He  bit  one  of  them  badly  because  he  tried  to  push 
me  into  the  water.  It  hurts  me  to  be  laughed  at,  and  called 
names,  and  besides  —  " 

"  Lad,"  interrupted  the  Trapper,  "  ye  are  with  John  Nor- 
ton this  trip,  an'  though  I  hope  I  can  take  a  joke  in  good 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  191 

natur',  as  a  reasonable  man  should,  and  hold  that  the  bullet 
an'  knife  should  be  used  carefully,  and  only  agin  inimies ; 
yit  a  noisy  mouth  and  a  loose  tongue  need  to  be  larnt  man- 
ners occasionally,  and  if  they  start  any  of  their  foolishness 
at  ye,  there'll  be  a  scrimmage,  for  sartiu,  that  they  won't 
forgit  for  the  tarm  of  their  nateral  lives,  even  if  the  mark- 
ins'  of  the  knife  has  to  be  put  on  to  some  of  'em.  No,  Lad, 
ye  aint  goin'  to  be  imposed  on,  this  trip,  I  can  tell  ye. 
Come,  Henry,  what  do  ye  think,  for  yer  jedgment  is  good 
on  sech  a  p'int,  can  a  man,  with  the  build  of  the  Lad,  pull  a 
long  course  ?  m 

u  I  don't  think  his  '  build,'  as  you  call  it,"  responded  Her- 
bert, "  is  especially  against  his  chances ;  it  is  not  bulk  of 
frame,  but  sinews,  and  stroke,  and  pluck  that  win  in  a  long 
race ;  and,  as  you  say,  the  Lad  is  a  natural  oarsman  and  his 
stroke  is  simply  perfect.  You  see,  it's  a  saving  stroke,  as 
we  call  it,  for  he  doesn't  waste  an  ounce  of  strength  in  pull- 
ing it,  and  however  long  and  sharp  it  is,  I  notice  he  pulls  it 
even  from  dip  to  finish,  and  his  boat  moves  on  a  level  keel 
and  cuts  the  water  like  a  knife.  I  dare  say  there  will  be 
several  fine  oarsmen  in  the  race,  but  I  am  confident  the  Lad 
can  beat  them,  if  he  will  only  try.  And,  moreover,  I  doubt 
if  there  will  be  a  man  of  them,  old  John  Norton,  who  can 
beat  you,  either,  especially  if  the  course  is  a  long  one  j  for 
although  you  don't  think  much  of  the  oars,  yet  you  pull  a 
very  strong  stroke  indeed,  and  are  cool,  and  that  counts  in 
such  matters ;  for  a  level  head  and  a  stout  heart  wins  many 
a  race,  and  especially  when  the  course  is  long  and  the  race 
a  hot  one.    I  think,  therefore,  -the  Lad  is  right,  when  he 


192  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

says  he  wont  pull  unless  you  do ;  for  I  know  that  a  man 
pulls  better  with  a  friend  by  his  side,  especially  if  he  be 
timid  and  is  in  a  strange  and  perhaps  hostile  crowd ;  and 
I  think  a  word  from  you  would  be  worth  the  race  to  him  if 
the  finish  should  be  close  and  the  shores  noisy.  You  under- 
stand, John  Norton." 

"  Yis,  yis,  Henry,"  returned  the  Trapper,  while  a  glance 
of  mutual  intelligence  passed  between  them,  "  Yis,  I  under- 
stand what  ye  mean,  and  yer  idees  are  sound,  and  jedg- 
matically  spoken,  too,  for  in  my  young  days  I  used  the  oar 
myself,  an'  pulled  in  a  good  many  races,  an'  I  never  pulled 
a  race  1  didn't  win,  either.  But  the  paddle  is  the  raal  in- 
strument for  the  hunter  an'  scout,  an'  my  gifts  sartinly  lie 
that  way ;  but  yer  words  has  reason  in  'em,"  said  the  old 
man,  as  he  looked  into  the  face  of  the  Lad,  the  features  of 
which  were  entirely  lacking  in  shrewdness  and  the  positive- 
ness  of  a  resolute  will.  "  Yis,  yer  words  sartinly  has  rea- 
son in  'em,  an'  if  ye  can  find  a  boat  for  me  with  row-locks 
and  oars  that  will  hold,  I'll  keep  the  Lad  company. — Yis, 
yis,  Henry  I  heerd  'em  afore  they  reached  the  bend ;  it's 
some  boat  comin'  up  the  river.  We'll  hear  their  hail  iu  a 
minit  —  I'll  keep  the  Lad  company,  I  say,  an'  I'll  do  my 
best  to  beat  him,  too." 

"  Hallo,  the  camp  there  ! "  shouted  a  voice  from  the  mid- 
dle of  the  river. 

"  Hallo  it  is,"  returned  the  Trapper,  without  moving  an 
inch  from  his  recumbent  posture,  or  scarcely  lifting  his  eyes. 
"  What  do  ye  want,  and  what  can  we  do  for  ye  ?  " 

For  a  minute  or  more  there  was  no  reply  to  the  question 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  193 

of  the  Trapper,  but  a  confused  murmur  of  several  voices  in 
quick  and  whispered  conversation,  and  the  noise  as  of  sev- 
eral boats  huddling  together  was  audible  to  those  on  the 
bank,  and  then  an  interrogation  came  out  of  the  dark- 
ness :  — 

"  Aint  you  John  Norton,  the  Trapper? " 

"  Well,  it  may  be  I  am,  and  it  may  be  I  aint ;  but  the 
chances  favor  the  idee  that  I  am  John  Norton,"  returned 
the  Trapper,  "  leastwise  tSe  signs  p'int  in  that  direction, 
and  now  let  me  ax  you,  who  be  ye  that  travel  at  night  — 
and  a  chilly  one  at  that,  —  and  where  ye  are  going  as  if  the 
day  wasn't  long  enough  for  yer  business." 

"  "We  are  bound  for  the  Saranacs,"  replied  the  voice,  "  to 
see  the  boat  race,  and  it  may  be  take  a  hand  in  it  ourselves. 
Shall  you  be  there  yourself?" 

"Yis,  I  shall  be  there,"  returned  the  Trapper;  "and  ye 
may  tell  'em. so;  and  ye  may  say  that  I  mean  to  pull,  my- 
self, if  they  don't  bar  a  man  because  he  haint  pulled  a  race 
for  forty  year,  an'  has  as  many  white  hairs  as  black  in  his 
scalp." 

"  All  right,  John  Norton,  we'll  tell  them  so ;  but  you'll  be 
wiped  out,  sure;  for  there's  to  be  some  New  York  pro- 
fessionals there,  they  say,  and  a  mighty  slim  chance  any  of 
us  chaps  stand  beside  them  I  reckon."  And  with  this  dis- 
couraging prediction  the  boat  started  on  up  the  stream." 

Not  'till  the  last  murmuring  sound  of  their  rather  noisy 
progress  died  away  did  the  Trapper  speak ;  then  he  said : 
"  Ye  see,  Henry,  what's  in  the  wind.  There'll  be  buzzin'  in 
the  hive  when  they  hear  I  am  coming  out  and  mean  to  pull, 


194  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

too.  I  thought  I'd  poke  'em  up  a  leetle,  anyhow,  aud  I 
warrant  I've  did  it;  for  there  be  some  old  men  livin'  jit  who 
remember  the  times  we  had  on  the  Horicon  waters  fifty 
year  agone,  and  they'll  tell  'em  what  John  Norton  was,  at 
the  ash  afore  these  waters  was  knowed  by  them  in  the  set- 
tlements. I  tell  ye,  Henry,  it  seems  foolish  for  a  man  of 
my  years  to  say  it,  but  if  ye  can  find  a  boat  for  me  that 
suits  yer  jeclgment,  I'll  have  a  lick  at  them  perfessionals,  hit 
or  miss.  It'll  be  an  etarnal  shame  if  them  city  boasters 
beat  the  men  born  in  the  woods,  and  on  their  own  waters 
too.  "What  do  ye  think  of  it,  Henry ;  is  there  a  chance  for 
me  and  the  Lad?" 

"  I  certainly  think  there  is  a  chance  for  you  both,  John 
Norton,"  replied  Herbert,  "and  a  good  one  too.  In  the 
first  place,  you  are  both  in  good  condition  and  used  to  the 
boats,  which  the  professionals  are  not,  and  that's  in  your 
favor.  Then  again  a  four-mile  course  is  a  long  one  to  pull 
in  these  Adirondack  boats,  and  wind  and  grit  and  sheer 
strength  count  favorably  against  any  extra  skill  the  pro- 
fessionals may  have.  If  the  Lad  only  had  your  muscular 
power  and  grit,  or  you  had  his  stroke,  I  would  bet  my  last 
dollar  on  either  of  you." 

"  Aye,  aye,  Henry,  that's  jest  it.  Ye  have  sartinly  struck 
the  trail  right  eend  to  and  gin  your  opinion  like  a  jedge  in 
a  school  house.  I  tell  ye  what,  Lad,  I  must  git  yer  stroke. 
Leastwise,  I'll  study  the  reason  of  it  to-morrer  as  we  go  up, 
if  ye'll  put  in  a  lick  or  two  occasionally.  And  if  ye  see  the 
perfessionals  beatin  me,  Lad,  and-  them  that  was  born  in 
the  woods  about  to  be  shamed  afore  the  men,  aye,  and  the 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  195 

wimin  folks  too,  and  I  give  ye  the  word,  will  ye  pull  ac- 
cordin'  to  the  gifts  that  the  Lord  has  gi'n  ye,  boy  ? " 

"  I  don't  want  to  pull  at  all,  John  Norton,"  responded  the 
Lad,  u  and  I  don't  know  how  I  shall  feel,  for  I  never  pulled 
a  race,  and  I  know  that  they  will  all  laugh  at  me ;  but  I 
won't  see  you  beat  by  anybody,  and  I'll  pull  as  hard  as  I 
can,  if  they  seem  likely  to  do  it.  But  I  guess  you  can  beat 
them,  and  I  would  rather  have  you  beat  than  to  beat  my- 
self." 

"  No  doubt,  no  doubt,"  returned  the  Trapper,  in  a  tone 
that  plainly  showed  the  great  relief  he  felt  at  the  promise 
he  had  succeeded  in  getting  from  the  Lad.  "  I  tell  ye, 
Henry,  the  thing  is  settled.  The  perfessionals  shant  take 
the  prize  out  of  the  woods,  if  the  Lad  and  me  can  help  it. 
Come,  let's  to  bed.  What  a  marcy  it  is  to  sleep  in  sech  a 
chamber  as  this,  where  ye  can  breathe  all  the  air  ye  want 
to  without  robbin'  anybody,  and  there's  no  danger  that  the 
roof  will  fall  in  onto  ye." 

So  saying,  the  Old  Trapper  stretched  himself  on  the 
ground  strewn  thick  with  the  fragrant  pine  stems,  and 
with  a  small  bag  of  meal  for  his  pillow,  sank  quickly  into  a 
slumber  which  many  a  king  on  his  soldier-guarded  couch 
would  envy.  His  friends  followed  his  example,  and  in  a  few 
moments  the  three  were  resting  in  soundest  sleep.  But 
the  river  still  flowed  on,  incapable  of  weariness.  The  stars 
stiL.  burned  with  undiminished  fervor,  and  over  the  sleepers' 
heads  the  pines  continued  to  make  their  soothing  plaint. 
In  the  cities,  men  were  cursing  and  fighting,  but  Nature, 
strong  and  safe  in  her  innocence,  rested  in  holy  peace. 


196  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

It  was  well  on  to  noon  of  the  next  clay  when  our  friends 
entered  the  waters  of  the  Lower  Saranac.  The  Trapper 
was  at  the  paddle  and  the  Lad  at  the  oars,  and  the  long, 
sharp  boat,  loaded  as  it  was,  passed  through  the  water  at  a 
rate  few  boats  ever  keep  for  any  distance. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Lad,"  remarked  the  Trapper,  "ye  had  the  right 
idee  of  a  boat  for  straight  runnin'  in  yer  head  when  ye 
shaped  the  bottom  board  for  the  one  we  are  in  ;  for  it  sar- 
tinly  gits  through  the  water  in  a  way  that's  surprisin'.  In  a 
crooked  creek  it  must  be  a  mighty  onreasonable  thing  to 
handle,  and  I  conceit  that  none  but  a  prayin'  man,  and  one 
careful  in  the  use  of  his  tongue,  could  manage  it  for  any 
length  of  time  and  not  git  arnest  in  his  speech  ;  but  for  open 
waters  and  a  strait  run  it's  parfection  itself.  I'd  give  a 
dozen  of  my  best  pelts  for  another  jest  like  it  for  to-uiorrer.'' 

"  You  are  right,"  said  Herbert ;  "  it's  just  the  boat  for 
straightaway  work,  and  I  mean  to  get  one  as  near  like  it  as 
I  can  for  you  to  pull  in  to-morrow.  It  looks  heavy,  and 
most  would  pick  a  lighter  one ;  but  a  long  boat  is  the  thing 
for  a  long  race,  and  long  oars,  too,  with  wide  blades,  if  one 
has  power  and  grit  enough  to  pull  them  strongly.  Where 
shall  we  stay  to-night  —  at  the  hotel  ? " 

"  The  Lord  forbid !  "  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  "  It's  nigh  on 
to  fifty  year  sence  I've  slept  under  a  shingled  roof  and 
smothered  within  the  walls  of  men's  buildin',  and  natur' 
and  reason  are  both  agin  the  doin'  of  sech  foolishness ;  for 
there  be  good  camps  nigh  the  upper  eend  of  the  Lake, 
where  we  can  eat  and  sleep  in  peace,  and  where  the  hound 
and  the  Lad  cau  have  contentment  j  for  the  dog  is  a  knowin' 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  197 

in'  dog  and  understands  his  rights,  for  his  blood  is  without 
a  cross  of  low  stuff  in  it,  and  he  can't  bear  the  mongrels 
and  half-breed  curs  of  the  settlements,  nohow,  and  the 
tramp  of  feet  and  the  buzz  of  voices  distarbs  him  as  much 
as  it  does  me.  And  a  man  who  isn't  an  Indian  should  think 
of  the  comfort  of  his  dog  and  plan  for  his  happiness,  as  I 
conceit.  Yis,  we'll  go  into  camp,  and  arter  we've  eaten  our 
fill  and  made  ready  for  the  night,  we  will  go  down  to  the 
hive  and  hear  the  senseless  things  buzz  awhile.  Mayhaps  I 
shall  find  a  few  yit  livin'  who  have  slept  on  the  trail  with 
me  and  heerd  the  crack  of  my  piece  in  a  scrimmage,  when 
powder  was  powder  and  every  bullet  was  worth  its  weight 
in  gold." 

It  was  well  on  toward  the  close  of  the  afternoon  when 
the  Lad's  boat,  containing  our  three  friends,  came  out  from 
behind  the  "Three  Sisters"  on  its  way  toward  the  rendez- 
vous. At  the  hotel  all  was  expectation.  For  a  great  crowd 
had  gathered  in  anticipation  of  the  morrow's  races,  and  the 
thought  that  they  were  to  see  the  celebrated  Trapper  and 
Scout  of  whom  they  had  read  and  heard  so  much,  but 
whom  they  had  never  seen,  stirred  them  with  the  feeling  of 
intense  curiosity.  The  three  guides  that  had  hailed  the 
camp  on  the  Racquette  the  evening  before  had  brought  the 
word  that  "  Old  John  Norton "  was  not  only  coming,  but 
that  he  was  going  to  enter  the  free-for-all  race,  and  pull 
against  the  professionals.  This  raised  the  excitement  to 
fever  heat,  and  the  feeling  became  intense.  Indeed,  two 
parties  had  already  sprung  up.  In  the  crowd  were  several 
aged  men  who  remembered  the  great  fame  which  the  Trap- 


198  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

per  had  as  an  oarsinan  fifty  years  before,  when  they  and  he 
were  young ;  and,  to  interested  groups  during  the  day,  they 
had  been  narrating  the  stories  of  his  skill,  enormous 
strengtb  and  unrivalled  agility,  exhibitions  of  which  they, 
with  their  own  eyes,  had  seen,  as  called  forth  by  the  su- 
preme exigencies  of  deadly  conflicts  in  hand  to  hand  fights, 
or  in  the  playful  but  manly  games  of  peace.  And  the  con- 
viction of  these  old  men  —  some  of  whom  had  not  only 
been  overtaken  by  age,  but  also  by  the  vicious  habits  of 
civilized  life  —  was  well  expressed  in  the  strong  assertion 
of  one  of  their  number,  who  closed  a  heated  verbal  contest 
with  a  gentleman  from  the  cities,  with  "  I  tell  ye,  sir,  there 
is'nt  a  man  on  God's  arth  can  beat  John  Norton  at  the 
oars." 

On  the  other  hand  the  professionals  had  their  advocates. 
Fine,  spruce  college  boys  "doing  the  woods"  in  jaunty 
straw  hats  with  broad  bands  of  blue  ribbon  round  them, 
and  twirling  little  rattan  canes  in  their  dapper  thin  fingers ; 
English  tourists,  strong-built  and  burly,  in  checked  suits  of 
woolen  stuffs,  several  of  whom  affecting  the  heavy  sports- 
man's style,  lugged  about  their  double  English-made  rifles, 
"  such  as  Gerard  used  in  the  jungles,  you  know,  sir ; "  while 
their  cartridge  belts  sagged,  heavy  with  lead,  as  they 
tramped  back  and  forth  along  the  piazza  in  broad-soled, 
broad-toed,  gaiter-boots,  with  spotless  leggins  reaching  from 
ankle  to  knee ;  quiet  city  gentlemen,  lawyers,  bankers,  cler- 
gymen, whose  knowledge  of  boating  extended  no  further 
than  seeing  or  reading  a  newspaper  account  of  the  annual 
race  between  Yale  and  Harvard  in  their  long,  pencil-like 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  199 

shells.  These,  with  here  and  there  a  single  exception,  all 
discussed  the  race  as  if  lying  between  three  professionals 
that  were  already  entered  to  pull.  Even  the  guides,  over- 
awed by  the  high-sounding  word,  "professional,"  and  by  the 
marvelous  stories  of  their  ability  at  the  oars  which  were 
passed  from  group  to  group,  were  intimidated  to  such  an 
extent  that  of  all  their  number,  representing  as  it  did  nearly 
every  boat  in  the  wilderness,  two  brothers  alone  had  en- 
tered. And  hence,  although  their  sympathies  were  strongly 
with  the  Trapper,  they  readily  admitted  that  the  "  profes- 
sionals n  would  win.  But  though  his  party  was  in  the 
minority  as  to  numbers,  its  spirit  was  self-asserting  in  tho 
extreme,  and  not  a  few  sportsmen  and  guides,  who  had 
seen  him  pull  his  boat  against  a  wind  that  scooped  the 
water  into  the  air,  as  steadily  as  if  the  lake  lay  level  to  his 
stroke,  or  thrust  it  up  a  stretch  of  rapids  where  the  water 
quivered  with  the  swiftness  of  its  descending  flight,  took 
stock  in  his  chances  and  endorsed  the  saying  of  the  old 
chap  who  in  his  excitement,  born  of  argument  or  liquor  — 
perhaps  it  would  not  be  kind  to  inquire  too  closely  which 
—  had  declared  that  there  wasn't  "a  man  on  God's  arth 
could  beat  Old  John  Norton  at  the  oars." 

Thus  stood  the  feeling  and  the  crowd  when  the  boat,  with 
the  Lad  at  the  oars  and  the  Trapper  at  the  paddle  and  Her- 
bert amidship,  came  out  from  behind  the  "  Three  Sisters  " 
into  plain  view  of  the  hundreds  that  were  watching  for  their 
appearance. 

Nothing  could  excel  the  fineness  of  the  tribute  which 
the  crowd,  composed  of  several  hundreds,  were  uncon- 


200  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

sciously  paying  to  the  fame  of  the  Old  Trapper ;  fur  as  tbe 
boat  came  on,  the  talking  ceased ;  even  the  giggling  of  a 
knot  of  young  misses  who  had  been  flirting  with  shameful 
ostentation  with  a  couple  of  undergraduates  from  Harvard, 
was  checked  before  they  were  aware  of  it,  by  the  sudden 
silence  which  had  fallen  on  the  densely  packed  throng,  and 
amid  a  stillness  more  impressive  by  far,  when  associated 
with  a  popular  assembly,  than  the  loudest  cheering,  the 
Lad's  boat  drew  on.  The  Lad  was  pulling  the  same  non- 
chalant stroke  as  was  his  custom,  his  head  lopped  as  usual 
on  one  side,  and  his  body  doubled  up  as  if  shrinking  to  get 
away  from  its  own  enormous  hight  and  ungainly  appearance. 
But  the  professionals,  who,  with  observant  eyes,  were  watch- 
ing the  approach,  noted  that  the  oars  were  of  unusual 
length,  that  the  blades  were  nearly  twice  the  customary 
width,  and  that  they  entered  and  left  the  water  with  a  pre- 
cision which  nothing  but  long  experience  can  give,  while  in 
their  recovery  they  passed  along  the  level  water  with  an 
evenness  which  bore  witness  that  the  wrists  that  guided 
their  return  were  educated  by  years  of  practice.  As  the 
boat  came  on  so  that  the  several  forms  could  be  recognized, 
one  of  them  drew  a  long  breath,  nudged  his  companions 
and  whispered  :  "  I'm  glad  it  isn't  the  Trapper  that's  hand- 
ling those  oars." 

The  old  man  was  seated  in  the  stern  of  the  boat,  and 
using  his  paddle  with  an  unconscious  grace ;  but  it  is  cer- 
tain that,  beyond  a  slight  sense  of  the  ludicrous  at  the 
peculiar  reception  that  he  and  his  companions  were  meet- 
ing, he  did  not  appropriate  the  fineness  of  the  compliment 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  201 

that  in  it  was  being  tendered  him.  For  in  his  own  eyes  he 
seemed  but  an  ordinary  person,  and  one  to  whom  belonged 
the  least  possible  amount  of  popular  applause.  He  was 
bare-headed  as  usual,  and  the  full  exposure  of  his  counte- 
nance and  forehead,  as  the  bright  sun  fell  on  him,  made  it 
possible  for  the  gazer's  eye  to  take  in  the  noble  majesty  of 
a  face  to  which  years  had  brought  no  weakness,  and  unto 
which  they  had  given  a  characterization  and  dignity  truly 
imposing. 

"  Aye,  aye,  the  bees  have  swarmed  for  sartin,  this  time, 
Henry,  and  the  whole  hive  is  empty.  By  the  Lord,  Lad, 
they  look  like  a  bunch  of  frightened  Hurons  huddlin'  to- 
gether in  the  midst  of  a  sudden  ambushment  afore  they 
have  had  time  to  think  or  get  to  shelter.  Hoot !  There's 
more  colors  in  their  garments  than  the  squaw  of  a  chief 
would  have  at  the  feast  of  the  Succotash,  and  the  toggery 
that  some  of  them  chaps  has  on  would  make  a  dead  moose 
bellow,  —  but  why  be  they  so  aruest-like  in  their  looks,  boy, 
and  what  be  the  sense  of  their  silence !  " 

To  this  interrogation  Herbert  made  no  reply,  for  he  under- 
stood the  pent-up  excitement  of  the  crowd  they  were  ap- 
proaching, and  knew  that  the  explosion  was  sure  to  come 
at  the  proper  moment;  and  he  would  not  for  the  world 
have  robbed  himself  of  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  Old  Trap- 
per's surprise.  He  therefore  made  no  reply.  The  boat  by 
this  was  within  twenty  rods  of  the  landing,  and  was  gliding 
rapidly  in.  The  Lad,  affected  by  the  silence,  and  surprised 
at  it,  suddenly  trailed  his  oars,  and  half  turning  in  his  seat 
lifted  his  simple  face  upward  to  see  what  was  the  cause  of 


202  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

it.  The  Old  Trapper,  surprised  at  the  extraordinary  con- 
duct of  the  crowd,  and  not  dreamiug  of  the  real  reason  of 
it,  also  intermitted  his  stroke  and  brought  his  paddle  to  a 
trail,  while  his  eyes  went  and  came  from  object  to  object 
as  if  in  the  presence  of  an  enemy. 

Thus  the  boat  slowed  its  progress  and  came  nearly  to  a 
pause  within  fifty  feet  of  the  landing,  when  suddenly  an  old 
white-headed  man,  dressed  in  humble  garb  and  leaning 
heavily  on  a  stout  stick,  who  stood  near  the  outermost 
angle  of  the  pier,  and  who  had  been  shading  his  eyes  for  a 
moment  from  the  western  sun  that  he  might  assist  his  tail- 
ing sight,  and  gazing  fixedly  at  the  countenance  of  the 
Trapper,  whose  features  he  had  not  seen  for  thirty  years, 
flourished  his  stick  in  the  air,  and  exclaimed  with  a  voice 
that  shook  with  the  intensity  of  his  emotion :  — 

"  John  Norton !  He  saved  my  life  at  the  battle  of  the 
Salt  Licks  forty  year  ago.    Three  cheers  for  John  Norton  ! " 

And  then,  as  if  the  cord  which  held  the  crowd  to  silence 
had  suddenly  snapped  and  yielded  to  the  pressure  of  the 
pent-up  excitement,  or  as  if  the  edged  words  of  the  old 
veteran  had  cut  it  like  a  knife,  a  cheer  arose  which  burst 
the  stillness  into  fragments,  and,  thrice  repeated,  rolled  its 
roar  across  the  lake  and  against  the  distant  hills,  until  their 
hollow  caverns  resounded  again,  while  on  the  instant  a  hun- 
dred white  handkerchiefs,  waved  by  whiter  hands,  sprung 
into  sight  snd  filled  the  air  with  their  snowy  fiutterings. 

It  was  then,  when  the  mighty  .cheer  broke  forth,  and 
while  the  roar  of  it  was  around  him,  that  the  Old  Trapper 
realized  the  honor  which  by  silence  and  voice  alike,  was 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  203 

being  shown  him.  Herbert's  eyes  were  on  him  with  the  glad 
watchfulness  of  one  who  knew  what  was  coming,  and  knew 
also  how  totally  unprepared  the  old  man  was  for  the  recep- 
tion, and  was  curious  to  note  his  bearing  of  it.  For  one 
instant  the  color  came  and  went  in  the  Trapper's  face  as  in 
the  face  of  a  girl  whoso  beauty,  at  her  entrance  to  the  par- 
lor, has  brought  every  eye  in  admiration  upon  her.  The 
least  possible  quiver  played  on  the  edges  of  his  lips,  and  a 
gleam  as  of  a  fine  light  shining  from  within  came  into  his 
eyes.  And  then  he  rose  and  stood  at  his  utmost  height  in 
the  boat,  erect  as  a  pine  which  has  come  to  its  fullest  girth, 
ripened  its  fiber  to  toughness,  but  has  not  as  yet  felt  the 
weakening  of  coming  decay.  So  the  old  man  rose  and 
stood  for  a  moment,  in  acknowledgment  of  the  greeting, 
with  a  grace  and  dignity  that  a  trained  courtier  might  envy, 
but  could  not  assume,  while  the  eyes  of  the  multitude  had 
time  to  take  in  the  size  of  his  splendid  proportions,  and  the 
grave  majesty  of  his  countenance ;  and  then  he  settled  to 
his  seat  and  the  boat  moved  to  the  landing. 

"  By  heaven  ! "  exclaimed  the  professional  to  his  com- 
panions again,  "  if  the  Trapper  can  handle  the  oars  like  that 
3hap  in  the  bow,  we  are  beaten  ! " 

And  this  was  John  Norton's  reception. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   RACE.      ' 

"  A  larger  scene  of  action  is  displayed." 

Virgil,  Dryden'8  Translation. 

*TT  was  high  noon  at  the  Saranac,  and  a  brighter  day  was 
never  seen.  The  sky  was  so  intensely  blue  that  it  fairly 
gleamed,  as  if,  like  woods  of  compact  fiber,  it  was  capable 
of  taking  polish.  In  it  the  sun  stood  and  shone  with  self- 
asserting  brilliancy.  It  glistened,  it  scintillated,  it  sparkled, 
as  if  its  rays  were  actually  frosty.  The  sky  above  was 
wintry.  The  cold  of  the  North  was  journeying  southward, 
like  her  feathered  couriers  on  lofty  wings.  The  upper  at- 
mosphere was  chilly,  but  on  the  earth  summer  still  tarried 
with  its  hazy  warmth  and  slumberous  airs.  The  heat  came 
from  the  earth  rather  than  from  the  sun,  and  lingered  like 
a  happy  child  near  the  mother  that  gave  it  birth,  and  from 
whose  bosom  it  would  not  fly.  The  lake  had  not  stirred  a 
ripple.  It  took  its  mood  from  the  atmosphere,  and  matched 
it  perfectly.  Perhaps  it  had  said  to  the  wind :  "  Oh,  let  me 
rest  to-day !  You  have  blown  me  about  and  kept  me  mov- 
ing until  I  am  weary.  Do  give  me  a  little  peace.  Come, 
dear,  sweet  wind,  if  you  love  me  so,  do  let  me  have  one  day 
of  rest ! "  And  the  wind,  thus  coaxed  by  the  sleepy  beauty, 
had  humored  her  luxurious  whim,  and  stood  all  day  holding 
his  very  breath.    The  air  was  thickened  as  with  golden- 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  205 

colored  smoke.  It  was  not  common  air ;  it  was  incensed, 
aromatic,  pungent.  The  nose  found  strauge,  spicy  scents  in 
it,  and  breathed  it  in  slowly,  as  a  delicate  mouth  receives 
cream,  not  to  swallow,  but  to  taste.  No  one  could  breathe 
such  an  air  simply  for  the  purpose  of  ordinary  life,  —  mere 
respiration, — but  as  one  breathes  perfume;  receiving  its 
delicious  sensation  as  a  luxury,  and  drawing  each  breath, 
not  for  life's,  but  for  joy's  sake.  In  front  of  "Martin's," 
across  the  lake,  the  hillside  fairly  flamed.  The  leaves  had  a 
ripened  glory,  rich  as  that  which  the  old  painters,  with  their 
ardent  colors,  painted  into  the  faces  and  around  the  heads 
of  their  saints.  Along  the  shores,  blown  by  previous  winds 
the  bright-colored  leaves  lay  thick;  some  lying  limp  and 
flat,  —  patches  of  crimson  on  the  dull  water,  —  some  half 
immersed,  while  others,  curled  and  curved,  floated  jauntily 
on  the  surface,  as  if  they  could  scarcely  bear  to  touch  the 
element  on  which  they  rested.  Nature,  on  tree  and  water, 
and  in  the  air,  was  lavish  of  her  highest  tints ;  until  the 
gray  moss  on  the  rocks,  and  the  gray  rocks  themselves, 
looked,  with  the  golden  colors  on  them,  almost  gorgeous. 

On  some  the  beauty  of  the  day  was  not  lost.  But  the 
noise  and  excitement  of  the  sport  had  shut  the  eyes  of 
most  to  its  extraordinary  charms,  or  caused  them  to  look 
upon  it  from  the  purely  utilitarian  standpoint  of  a  tin  ped- 
dler from  New  Hampshire,  who,  hearing  of  the  great  gath- 
ering, and  having  an  eye  for  business,  had  made  a  forced 
drive  of  fifty  miles  in  the  hope  of  finding  a  market  for  his 
wares,  and  having  sold  his  last  kettle,  was  now  giving  his 
undivided  attention  to  the  cause  of  his  good  fortune,  and 


206  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

who,  after  a  profound  inspection  of  the  surroundings,  pro- 
nounced it  a  "  blamed  good  day  for  a  race."  Nor  was  he 
wrong  in  his  estimate.  It  was  a  good  day  for  a  race,  and  a 
long  race  at  that.  For  of  wind  there  was  none.  The  water 
was  level  as  water  might  be,  and  the  air  was  of  that  genial 
quality  that  one  could  breathe  under  the  necessities  of  vio- 
lent exertion,  even  with  gasps,  and  not  have  it  "  cut"  wind- 
pipe or  lungs. 

It  was  nigh  noon,  and  the  "  free  for  all "  was  to  be  pulled 
at  one  o'clock.  The  entries  were  closed  the  evening  before 
and  stood  seven»in  all  j  the  three  professionals ;  the  brother 
guides,  known  as  Fred  and  Charlie,  respectively ;  the  Old 
Trapper,  and  the  Lad.  When  the  names  were  announced 
from  the  front  piazza  to  a  highly  interested  crowd,  which 
numbered  every  man  and  boy,  guide  and  gentleman  on  the 
place,  the  other  names  were  received  with  cheers,  but  the 
greeting  given  to  the  Lad  was  peculiar.  When  the  chair- 
man of  the  committee  of  arrangements  announced  it,  it  was 
heard  by  the  throng  in  dead  silence,  none  knowing  to  whom 
it  applied ;  but  when  the  chairman  in  response  to  a  ques- 
tion from  the  crowd  explained  that  "  it  belongs  to  the  tall 
young  man  that  came  in  with  Mr.  Herbert  and  John  Norton 
yesterday,"  the  most  extraordinary  explosion,  and  one  char- 
acteristic of  an  American  audience,  followed.  It  was  not  a 
cheer,  nor  a  groan,  but  a  monstrous  roar  of  good  nature, 
astonishment,  contempt,  and  mirthfulness  all  combined  in 
equal  measure. 

Interrogations  crossed  and  re-crossed  each  other  in  the 
air.    The  old  chap  who  had  started  the  cheer  for  John  Nor- 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  207 

ton  the  previo  is  day,  wanted  to  know  "  which  section  of 
the  boy  was  to  pull,  the  upper  or  lower  half,  for  no  Saranac 
boat  would  hold  both  halves  of  him  at  once."  Remarks 
more  or  less  witty  were  made  as  to  the  length  of  his  legs 
and  arms,  the  enormous  size  of  his  hands,  and  the  lathe- 
like shape  of  his  build.  Many  of  these  remarks  were  di- 
rectly or  indirectly  addressed  to  the  Trapper,  as  the  only 
one  who  could  give  information  who  and  what  the  Lad  was. 

The  old  man  bore  the  badinage  of  the  crowd  for  several 
minutes  with  immovable  good  nature  ;  and  it  was  not  until 
the  hilarity  passing  downward  from  the  better  class  to  the 
coarser  and  half-drunken  hangers-on  that  can  always  be 
found  in  a  crowd  at  a  country  hotel — began  to  be  tinctured 
with  vulgarity,  if  not  with  abuse,  and  the  questions  put 
with  offensive  directness  to  the  Lad  himself,  who  was  stand- 
ing timidly  behind  him,  that  he  made  any  reply.  But  then 
he  stepped  suddenly  aside,  bringing  by  the  motion  the  Lad 
into  full  view,  and  laying  one  hand  lightly  on  his  shoulder 
and  stretching  the  broad  palm  of  the  other  out,  he  said :  — 

u  I  sartinly  hope  I  can  take  a  joke,  either  on  my  own  ac- 
count or  on  account  of  a  friend ;  but  there's  a  pint  beyend 
which  it's  onreasonable  to  go,  and  beyend  which  it's  axin  a 
good  deal  of  human  natur'  to  stand.  And  a  few  of  ye  noisy 
chaps  in  this  matter  of  the  Lad's  rowin'  to-morrer,  has  gone 
about  fur  enough,  and  I'd  advise  ye  to  fetch  up,  or  ye'll  sar- 
tinly gifc  yerselves  into  trouble.  And  sence  I've  got  a  chance 
I  might  as  well  stop  a  leetle  nonsense  that  the  Lad  has  told 
me  ye  practised  on  him  when  he  come  out  with  his  pelts 
last  spring  j  and  so  I'll  jest  say  —  and  there  be  a  few  here 


208  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

who  will  tell  ye  that  John  Norton  is  apt  to  keep  his  word  — 
that  if  this  boy  by  my  side,  which  I  call  the  Lad,  but  who 
calls  himself,  '  The  Man  Who  Don't  Know  Much/  ever  comes 
here  agin,  and  any  of  ye  git  careless  in  yer  speech  toward 
bim,  I'll  come  out  and  settle  the  matter  with  them  that 
does  it,  and  in  a  way  they  won't  forgit  while  they  live  on 
the  arth." 

It  was  five  minutes  of  one  o'clock,  and  the  seven  boats 
were  already  in  position  and  the  seven  oarsmen,  excepting 
the  Trapper  and  the  Lad,  had  their  oars  at  a  rest.  The 
course  ran  straight  down  the  lake  to  a  line  of  seven  buoys, 
so  that  each  boat  had  its  own  buoy  to  turn,  and  thence 
back  again  to  the  line  at  which  they  were  now  stationed  for 
the  start.  The  length  of  the  course  was,  therefore,  "just 
fouc  miles;  two  out  and  return.  A  straight-away  race  it 
was  to  be,  and  longer  by  half  than  was  ever  before  pulled 
on  those  waters.  The  fact  alone  increased  the  interest  of 
the  spectators,  and  provoked  a  deal  of  discussion.  Since 
the  previous  evening,  divisions  had  taken  place  in  the  opin- 
ions of  the  crowd,  and  every  competitor  but  the  Lad  had 
his  backers.  The  professionals,  of  course,  had  the  majority 
still,  but  the  Old  Trapper  was  well  backed,  especially  by  the 
older  men  among  the  natives,  and  by  the  ladies  of  the  hotel, 
upon  whom  the  simplicity  of  his  manners,  and  perhaps 
even  more,  the  greatness  of  his  fame,  had  made  a  profound 
and  most  favorable  impression.  But  the  two  young  guides 
Fred  and  Charlie  did  not  lack  supporters  either,  —  the 
former  because  of  his  enormous  strength,  which  had  already 
given  him  a  brilliant  local  reputation,  and  because  although 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  209 

he  had  never  pulled  in  a  public  race,  he  was  nevertheless 
known  to  have  such  command  at  the  oars  as  few  attaiD, 
and  uone  unless  they  have  a  natural  aptitude  for  the  work. 
Herbert  believed  that  Fred,  would  win  the  race  if  any 
accident  should  happen  to  the  Trapper,  and  if  the  Lad 
should,  through  timidity,  fail  to  exert  himself;  for  the  young 
man  had  been  his  guide  several  seasons  and  he  had  assisted 
him  with  suggestions  in  mastering  a  stroke  which  allowed 
his  enormous  strength  to  expend  itself  to  the  best  advan- 
tage. Indeed,  many  of  the  spectators  were  aware  of  this 
and  in  default  of  Herbert's  pulling,  himself,  which  was  the 
subject  of  keen  and  universal  regret,  Fred,  was  looked 
upon  as  in  a  certain  sense  his  representative,  and  was 
backed  accordingly.  His  brother,  although  of  lighter  pro- 
portions, had  already  won  in  many  races,  and  was  known 
as  one  of  the  best,  if  not  the  best  oarsman  among  the 
guides,  and  his  party  was  strong  in  numbers  and  equally 
strong  in  hope,  including  as  it  did  nearly  every  visitor  from 
an  adjoining  hotel,  and  every  guide  in  the  St.  Eegis  region. 
Indeed,  as  between  the  two  brothers,  Fred,  and  Charlie,  and 
the  Trapper ;  the  guides  and  dwellers  in  the  woods  were 
well  represented,  and  they  felt  that  the  chance  of  their 
champions  winning  the  prizes  over  the  professionals  was  as 
good  as  it  could  possibly  be,  and  they  backed  their  men 
with  all  the  earnestness  of  their  earnest  natures  and  the 
talkative  confidence  of  local  pride  now  thoroughly  aroused. 
The  Lad  had  not  a  single  backer  with  the  exception,  strange 
to  say,  of  the  professionals  themselves :  for  even  Herbert 
did  not  feel  persuaded  that  he  would  pull  with  energy,,  and 


210  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

therefore  said  nothing  openly  of  his  chances.  But  the  pro- 
fessionals, who  had  watched  his  stroke  as  ho  came  down 
the  lake  the  day  before,  and  knew  nothing  of  his  timid 
temperament,  inwardly  feared  him  more  than  all  the  others, 
and  decided  among  themselves  that  he  was  their  real  an- 
tagonist, though  of  this  they  said  nothing  to  others,  but 
through  a  "  silent  partner  "  they  "  hedged  "  on  him  in  the 
betting  which  quietly  and  without  the  least  publicity  had 
been  indulged  in  to  a  considerable  extent,  especially  among 
tbe  guests  of  the  hotel  and  the  city  visitors  from  the  ad- 
joining houses.  The  boats  in  which  the  several  contestants 
were  to  pull  were  by  no  means  of  the  same  length  or  shape, 
for  the  conditions  of  the  race  allowed  them  to  "  take  their 
pick,"  and  each  had  followed  his  own  inclinations.  The 
three  professionals  had  picked  the  lightest  boats  they  could 
find,  and  those  in  which  they  sat  averaged  about  sixty 
pounds  and  were  some  thirteen  feet  long.  Charlie  selected 
a  light  one  belonging  to  a  lady,  one  of  the  guests  of  the 
house,  of  lapstreak  build  but  narrow  and  low,  made  of 
Spanish  cedar,  polished  till  it  shone  like  glass,  twelve  feet 
in  length  and  weighing  only  forty-six  pounds.  The  other 
guide,  Fred,  pulled  his  own  boat,  over  fifteen  feet  in  length, 
and  which  weighed  eighty  pounds  and  more.  For  the  Trap- 
per, Herbert  had  selected  one  of  precisely  the  same  length 
and  weight,  while  the  Lad  sat  in  his  own  that  measured 
seventeen  feet  and  upward  and  weighed  over  ninety  pounds. 
The  Trapper  had  with  him  his  rifle,  from  which  no  argu- 
ment of  Ilerbert  —  because  of  the  extra  weight  it  added,  — 
could  separate  him  j  and  in  the  stern  of  the  Lad's  boat  sat 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  211 

Sport,  the  hound,  with  an  expression  of  such  gravity  as 
only  a  hound's  counteuance,  when  in  repose,  can  show ;  as 
if  he  had  been  elected  to  preside  as  judge  over  the  race, 
and  felt  to  the  full  the  grave  responsibility  of  the  position 
and  its  accompanying  dignity. 

The  number  of  the  spectators  was  a  wonder  to  all,  and 
entirely  unanticipated.  For  although  it  was  expected  that 
a  large  crowd  would  be  present,  yet  the  gathering  had 
grown  into  unprecedented  and  enormous  proportions. 
Where  the  people  came  from  was  a  mystery.  It  seemed  as 
if  not  only  had  the  wilderness  sent  out  every  guide  and 
party  camping  in  it,  but  as  if  every  hotel  in  the  whole  region 
had  emptied  its  guests  upon  the  waters  and  shores  of  the 
Lower  Saranac,  and  that  even  the  outlying  villages  had 
poured  their  entire  population  into  the  same  receptacle. 
The  long,  wide  piazzas  of  the  hotel,  the  wharf,  even  the 
roof  of  the  boat-house,  swarmed  with  human  beings.  The 
shore  on  either  side  of  the  lake  was  also  lined  with  specta- 
tors for  the  distance  of  half  a  mile,  while  on  the  waters  of 
the  lake  itself,  stretched  on  either  side  of  the  course  which 
was  duly  protected  from  infringement  by  guard  boats  sta- 
tioned at  suitable  distances  by  the  committee  of  arrange- 
ments, at  least  five  hundred  boats  lay  loaded  deep  with 
eager  spectators.  From  a  flag-staff  in  front  of  the  hotel 
the  stars  and  stripes  hung  pendent  in  the  still  air,  a  drapery 
of  glorious  color  in  the  bright  sunshine,  while  numberless 
smaller  flags  and  showy  streamers  flecked  the  air  with  their 
rich  shades  everywhere.  Nature  and  man  seemed  in  rivalry 
and  striving  to  outdo  each  other  in  contributing  most  to  the 
spectacular  glory  of  the  scene. 


212  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

Such  was  the  position  of  things  at  live  minutes  of  one 
o'clock,  —  the  seven  boats  in  line,  and  the  seven  contest- 
ants waiting  fur  the  word,  with  every  eye  among  the  thou- 
sands fastened  upon  them  amid  a  silence  as  profound  as  if 
by  some  supernatural  power  every  man  and  trace  of  man 
had  been  suddenly  banished  from  the  spot,  and  nature  had 
returned  to  the  uninterrupted  silence  of  her  primeval  soli- 
tude. 

"Now,  boys,"  said  the  Trapper,  speaking  to  the  two 
brothers  on  his  right,  "  ye  must  remember  that  a  four-mile 
race  is  a  good  deal  of  a  pull,  and  the  go-oft  isn't  half  as 
decidin'  as  the  come-in.  I  don't  conceit  we  can  afford  to 
fool  away  any  time  even  in  the  fust  half  mile,  for  them 
three  perfessionals  have  come  up  here  to  row,  and  they  look 
to  me  as  if  they  had  a  good  deal  of  that  sort  of  fun  in  'em ; 
but  it  won't  do  to  git  flustered  at  the  start,  and  if  ye  see  fit 
to  follow  it,  I  will  set  ye  a  jedgmatical  sort  of  a  stroke 
which  will  send  us  out  to  the  bys  yender  without  any  raw- 
ness in  the  windpipe  or  kinks  in  the  legs.  Still,  if  ye  don't 
think  ye  are  pulling  fast  enough  take  yer  own  lick,  —  for  in 
sech  matters  the  best  jedgment  may  prove  like  a  hound  off 
the  scent,  and  I  wouldn't  spile  yer  chances  of  walloping 
them  perfessionals,  to-day,  for  all  the  money  on  the  arth. 
And  in  sech  a  race  as  this  is  likely  to  be,  it's  only  just  and 
reasonable  that  every  man  should  foller  his  own  notions, 
and  act  accordin'  to  his  gifts." 

"  Do  you  think  we  shall  win,  Old  Trapper  ? "  said  Fred.  :n 
a  low  tone. 

"  I  duuno,  I  dunno,  boy ;  I  sartinly  dunno,';  returned  the 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  213 

Trapper  in  a  tone  scarcely  above  a  whisper.  "  I  like  yer 
build,  for  ye  are  broad  in  yer  chest  and  thick  in  yer  loins, 
and  yer  jaw  bone  is  a  big  un,  and  that  means  ye  have  got 
plenty  of  grit,  as  I  have  obsarved  natur' ;  but  I  don't  like 
yer  oars.  No,  I  can't  say  I  like  yer  oars,  specially  that  left 
one,  for  there's  a  knerl  in  the  shank  of  it  that  oughtn'  to 
be  there,  and  I  fear  the  pesky  thing  will  play  a  trick  on  ye 
at  the  finish.  But,  Henry  has  great  confidence  in  ye  and 
Henry  knows  what  rowin'  and  oars  is,  for  sartin'.  I'd  give 
every  skin  in  the  cabin  if  the  boy  was  atween  me  and  the 
Lad  here,  aye,  and  throw  in  a  dozen  or  two  of  my  best  traps 
to  boot." 

u  Your  oars  are  big  enough  to  hold,  any  way,"  rejoined 
the  young  man,  "  and  I  hope  to  heaven  you  will  win." 

"  Thank  ye,  boy,  thank  ye.  It  is  well  spoken  in  ye.  Yis, 
I  sartainly  shall  try,  for  it  would  be  a  mortal  shame  to  have 
the  prize  go  out  of  the  woods,  for  the  piece  is  a  likely  one 
to  look  at,  and  they  say  it  has  a  long  range.  And  if  noth- 
ing gives  way  I'll  give  'em  a  touch  of  the  stuff  that's  in  me, 
for  the  last  half  mile  that  will  make  them  git  down  to  their 
work  in  arnest,  ye  may  depend  on  it.  But  if  anything  hap- 
pens to  us,  or  we  can't  do  it,  I  have  great  hopes  of  the  Lad, 
here,  for  his  gifts  be  wonderful  at  the  oars,  and  if  he  will 
only  pull  as  I  seed  him  day  afore  yesterday  he'll  —  " 

"Ready,  there!"  said  the  sharp,  clear  voice  of  the  Starter. 
il  Beady  there,  for  the  ivord  ! " 

"  Aye,  aye,  ready  it  is,"  replied  the  Trapper,  as  he  ad- 
vanced his  blades  well  ahead  ready  for  the  signal.  "  Now, 
Lad,"  whispered  the  Trapper  hoarsely,  "  don't  ye  forgit  yer 


214  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

promise,  and  if  anything  happens,  or  ye  see  I  can't  win, 
and  I  give  ye  the  word,  John  Norton  will  never  forgive  ye 
if  ye  don't  pull  like  a  sinner  running  from  the  jedgment." 
"  Ready  there  all  of  you.  One,  two,  THREE.  GO  ! " 
At  the  word,  "  Go ! "  the  seven  boats  started  ;  but  not  to- 
gether. The  oars  of  the  three  professionals  dropped  into 
the  water  as  if  their  blades  were  controlled  by  one  man, 
and  their  stroke  was  so  tense  and  quick  that  the  light  boats 
fairly  jumped  ahead  like  three  arrows  shot  from  one  quiver- 
ing string.  But  lightning-like  as  was  their  stroke,  it  was 
no  quicker  than  the  one  that  Charlie,  the  guide,  had  deliv- 
ered, nor  had  they  thrown  an  ounce  of  vigor  into  theirs 
which  he  had  not  also  put  into  his ;  and  the  little  boat  in 
which  he  sat  had  the  best  of  the  send-off  by  at  least  a  foot. 
The  other  guide  and  the  Trapper  had  been  slower  to  get 
away  —  as  in  reason  they  must,  being  in  heavier  boats, — 
and  were  at  least  a  full  length  behind,  before  they  had 
fairly  got^into  motion.  Nor  even  then  did  the  Trapper 
seem  to  be  anxious  to  make  up  the  lost  ground,  nor  to  care 
if  he  lost  more ;  for  his  stroke  was  long,  steady,  and  to  the 
lookers-on  it  seemed  leisurely  pulled.  The  Lad  was  the  last 
to  get  off,  and  his  stroke  was  even  longer,  easier,  and  more 
deliberately  delivered  than  the  Trapper's ;  and  so  careless 
and  ungainly  was  his  appearance,  and  so  little  snap  did  he 
evince,  that  the  crowd,  who  cheered  the  passage  of  the 
others  as  they  swept  past,  laughed  and  groaned  aud  roared 
their  fun  out  at  him  as  he  swung  nonchalantly  along.  For 
forty  rods  the  race  continued,  without  change  in  the  rela- 
tive positions  of  the  seven  boats.    The  professionals  pulled 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  215 

a  quick,  sharp  stroke  of  forty-odd  to  the  minute,  which  was 
precisely  matched  by  the  young  guide,  and  the  gain  of  a 
foot  he  had  at  the  send-off  he  still  held  almost  to  an  inch. 
A  prettier  sight  than  the  four  leading  boats  presented  never 
gladdeued  a  boatman's  eye,  nor  stirred  the  gazer's  blood. 
The  eight  oars  flashed,  dropped,  and  flashed  again  as  the 
oarsmen  swept  their  blades  ahead,  as  if  their  motions  were 
regulated  by  machinery,  while  their  heads  and  bodies  rose 
and  sank  with  automatic  precision.  Some  rods  behind,  the 
Trapper  and  Fred,  were  pulling  side  by  side  and  stroke  for 
stroke,  — long,  strong  and  steady. 

"  I  tell  ye,  boy,"  said  the  old  man  to  the  young  guide  by 
his  side,  as  he  half  turned  his  head  and  threw  a  glance  for- 
ward, "  them  perfessionals  have  got  their  match  for  quick- 
ness in  yer  brother,  if  I  am  any  jedge,  and  if  he's  got  wind 
and  grit  they'll  like  him  as  leetle  as  a  half-breed  likes  the 
pill  of  the  doctor ;  for  the  more  they  chew  him  the  bitterer 
he'll  taste.  It  does  me  good  to  see  the  boy  hang  to  'em. 
Lord-a-massy !  how  the  folks  are  yellin',  and  the  wimmin' 
themselves  are  screechin'  like  squaws  at  the  maize  dance. 
Yis,  yis,  boy,  I  understand  ye ;  but  don't  ye  worry ;  four 
miles  is  fom  miles;  and  it's  a  long  oar  and  strong  back 
that's  goin'  to  win  this  race,  and  no  clipper-clapper  work 
that's  makin'  the  folks  screech  so  ahead ;  but  if  ye  are  nar- 
vous  we'll  lengthen  out  a  leetle  jest  to  show  'em  that  we 
aint  more  than  half  asleep."  "  Come,  Lad  !  "  called  the 
Trapper,  to  his  comrade  astern,  "  don't  ye  mind  the  foolish- 
ness they  are  saying  to  ye  and  the  dog,  but  hist  along  a  lee- 
tle faster,  for  we  are  goin'  to  let  out  a  link  or  two,  and  I 


216  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

feel  a  leetle  easier  to  have  ye  nigh  enough  to  catch  the  rea- 
son of  yer  stroke  and  feel  the  ease  of  it  in  my  elbows." 

So  saying,  the  old  man  set  his  comrade  a  stroke  so  long 
and  sharply  pulled  that  the  two  boats  fairly  doubled  their 
rate  of  speed,  and  in  a  minute  were  end  and  end  with  the 
boats  ahead,  while  the  exhibition  of  strength  thus  made, 
taking  the  spectators,  who  had  begun  to  look  upon  the  race 
as  lying  between  the  four  contestants  in  front,  by  surprise, 
brought  a  roar  of  astonishment  and  wild  delight  from  their 
mouths  that  fairly  lifted  the  air  as  with  an  explosion.  But 
here  and  there  a  watchful  eye,  and  pre-eminently  that  of 
the  "  silent "  partner  of  the  professionals,  noted  that,  rapid 
as  had  been  the  movement  of  the  two  boats  forward,  as 
impelled  by  the  tremendous  spurt  of  the  Trapper  and  Fred., 
and  although  the  Lad  still  swung  aloug  in  his  nonchalant 
manner,  yet  when  the  spurt  had  ended  and  six  instead  of 
four  boats  were  now  in  line,  the  boat  of  the  Lad  was  in  the 
precise  position  as  regards  its  nearness  to  the  Trapper  that 
it  had  been  from  the  beginning  of  the  race.  Aud  seeing 
this,  —  a  very  instructive  fact  to  one  of  his  profession  —  he 
proceeded  to  "  hedge  "  yet  more. 

"There !"  said  the  Trapper  to  the  young  guide  at  his  side, 
as  the  two  boats  came  up  even  with  the  other  four,  and  he 
had  breathed  himself  a  moment,  "  I  guess  we'll  ease  up  a 
leetle,  for  the  time  to  raally  pull  hasn't  come  yit.  I  tell  ye, 
boy,  ye  needn't  be  afeared  about  the  race.  That  rifle  is 
goin'  to  stay  here  in  the  woods,  and  I  sartinly  hope  ye  may 
git  it,  too;  for  ye  have  got  the  raal  grit  in  ye,  and  yer  stroke 
is  so  much  like  Henry's,  that  when  ye  let  out  back  there  I 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  217 

almost  conceited  the  boy  himself  was  pullin'  yer  boat.  No, 
no,  boy ;  don't  say  a  word,  but  keep  yer  breath  to  yerself, 
for  je'Il  need  it  all  at  the  finish.  No,  no,"  continued  the 
Trapper,  as  if  talking  to  himself,  "  I  don't  need  the  piece, 
and  Henry  has  as  good  a  one  already  as  man  ever  handled, 
and  a  good  rifle  aint  got  every  day  and  is  better  than  a  for- 
tin'  to  one  of  yer  years.  Yis,  boy,  you  let  me  set  ye  the 
stroke,  and  I'll  bring  ye  in  ahead  of  them  chaps,  and  of  yer 
brother,  too  ;  for  it's  agin  reason  that  a  light  boat  and  a 
quick  stroke  should  win  agin  a  long  boat  and  a  long  oar, 
with  sech  a  back  and  sech  grit  as  ye  have.  So  save  yer 
breath  as  much  as  ye  can  for  the  finish,  and  the  rifle  shall 
be  in  yer  cabin  to-night,  or  my  name  ain't  John  Norton." 

"Now,"  resumed  the  Trapper  after  a  moment's  pause, 
"  there's  the  Lad  back  there  that  can  beat  us  both,  but  his 
sperit  is  agin  it,  for  he  thinks  it  would  tickle  an  old  man 
like  me  to  win  the  prize,  and  so  he  won't  pull.  Jest  watch 
his  stroke,  boy,  and  obsarve  the  reason  of  it.  Did  ye  ever 
see  a  boat  run  like  that  with  sech  leetle  effort  ?  Lord  bless 
the  Lad !  its  a  marvel,  how  the  Creatur  can  put  so  much 
power  into  sech  an  onreasonable  body.  —  Easy,  boy,  easy, 
-et  'em  git  ahead  if  they  want  to.  The  comin'  in  is  what 
decides  a  race,  and  I'll  give  ye  a  stroke  on  the  last  half  mile 
that'll  make  'em  feel  like  an  over-fed  hound  in  a  hot  chase." 

Thus  the  boats  rushed  on  their  way,  each  running  as 
straight  towards  its  appointed  buoy  as  a  bullet  could  fly ; 
while  the  multitude,  now  far  astern,  watched  with  eager 
eyes  and  bated  breath  the  receding  race.  As  the  boats 
passed  farther  and  farther  down  the  lake  the  murmur  of 


218    '  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

renewed  conversation  arose ;  while  speculation,  guesses,  and 
strong  assertions  as  to  who  would  win  were  heard  on  all 
sides.  It  was  evident  that  the  party  of  the  Trapper  was 
already  in  the  ascendant ;  for  the  spurt  he  had  made,  and 
which  had  carried  his  boat  with  such  a  rush  up  even  to  the 
front,  had  revealed  the  tremendous  power  of  the  man,  and 
shown  that  age  had  not  weakened,  to  any  extent,  his  enor- 
mous strength.  The  old  men  in  the  crowd,  whose  sympa- 
thies were  naturally  enlisted  in  behalf  of  their  former  com- 
rade, were  nearly  beside  themselves  with  delight,  as  they 
saw  him  rush  his  boat  forward.  They  swung  their  hats  j 
they  shook  each  other's  hands;  they  cheered  with  their 
thin,  tremulous  voices ;  they  actually  wept,  while  the  old 
fellow  who  had  repeated  it  at  least  twenty  times  before, 
again  asserted :  "  I  tell  ye,  there  isn't  a  man  on  God's  arth 
can  beat  John  Norton  at  the  oars." 

At  last,  a  man  with  stentorian  lungs,  who  stood  on  the 
ridge  of  the  boat  house,  shouted  with  all  the  power  of  his 
voice :  "  They  have  turned  the  buoys !  They  have  turned 
the  buoys !  The  professionals  and  Charlie  are  ahead !  "  At 
this  announcement  a  silence  fell  on  the  multitude  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  then  the  buzz  and  murmur  of  mingling  voices 
again  arose. 

"  How  far  behind  is  John  Norton  ? "  said  the  old  chap  on 
the  wharf. 

"  He  and  Fred,  are  four  rods  astern,  at  least,"  bellowed 
the  man  in  reply. 

"Where's  the  Lad?"  asked  the  "silent"  partner,  in  a 
clear  tenor  voice. 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  219 

"  Oh,  he's  out  of  the  race,"  said  the  man  on  the  roof. 
"  He's  full  tea  rods  behind  the  Trapper  and  Fred." 

At  this  the  "  silent "  man  with  the  tenor  voice  looked 
puzzled.  He  took  a  cigar  from  his  pocket,  and,  as  he  coolly 
struck  a  match  on  his  boot  heel,  those  standiug  near  him 
mutter:  "  Ten  rods  astern!  His  stroke  is  a  winning  stroke. 
What's  the  matter  with  the  fool  ? " 

By  this  time  the  boats  were  plain  to  the  view,  and  the 
stillness  which  had  settled  on  the  crowd  which,  with  eager 
eyes  and  shortened  breath  watched  their  coming,  was  so 
profound  as  to  be  absolutely  oppressive  j  for  the  contest- 
ants were  barely  a  mile  away,  and  every  boat,  and  even  the 
action  of  the  several  boatmen,  was  clearly  visible. 

"  There,  boy,"  said  the  Trapper  to  the  young  man  at  his 
side,  "  ye  have  trusted  to  an  old  man's  jedgment,  who 
played  the  game  we  are  at  afore  ye  was  born,  and  I  told  ye 
comin'  down,  the  piece  should  be  in  yer  cabin  to-night.  The 
time  has  sartinly  come  for  us  to  show  the  grit  that's  in  us. 
Are  ye  ready  for  the  stroke,  boy  ? " 

The  guide  made  no  reply,  save  a  quick,  sharp  nod  of  his 
head  and  a  slight  tightening  of  his  lips,  while  his  heavy 
brows  fairly  lowered  over  his  eyes. 

"  All  right,"  said  the  Trapper;  "  ready  for  the  word;  long 
and  quick  ;  now  !  " 

The  swoop  of  a  hawk  into  the  thicket  after  its  prey  is 
scarcely  swifter  or  straighter  than  was  the  rush  of  the  two 
boats,  in  which  the  old  man  and  the  young  guide  sat,  to  the 
front,  until  their  bows  lined  exactly  with  those  of  the  other 
four. 


220  ADIRONDACK   TALES.   « 

"  Easy,  easy  now,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  Git  yer  breath, 
boy.  Yis,  Heury  was  right ;  ye  are  grit  from  yer  head  to 
yer  toes.    The  rifle  is  yours  or  John  Norton  is  a  —  " 

4  groan  of  pain  and  rage  interrupted  the  Trapper  He 
threw  a  glance  to  the  left  and  the  cause  was  apparent,  -.he 
oars  of  Charlie  were  trailing,  while  the  white  shirt  that  he 
wore  was  spattered  all  over  with  blood.  His  tremendous 
exertions  had  been  too  much.  He  had  broken  a  blood  ves- 
sel, and  from  mouth  and  nose  alike  jetted  with  every  gasp 
the  sanguine  tide. 

"  Never  mind  the  boy,"  hoarsely  whispered  the  Trapper ; 
"  they'll  pick  him  up.  The  piece  must  stay  in  the  woods  if 
yer  whole  family  dies.  These  chaps  pull  well.  Now,  boy, 
put  yer  soul  onto  yer  oars,  and  pull  yer  arms  out  of  their 
sockets,  or  win.    Eeady  for  the  word  ?    Now  !  " 

The  young  man  obeyed  the  Trapper  to  a  fraction.  He 
threw  the  full  force  of  the  enormous  strength,  for  which  he 
was  noted,  on  to  his  oars.  The  cords  of  his  neck  swelled 
and  stood  out  like  ropes ;  his  nostrils  dilated:  his  face  fairly 
sharpened  to  the  effort ;  but  the  sudden  vigor  of  his  stroke 
was  too  much  for  the  wood.  The  miserable  oar,  to  which 
the  Trapper  had  alluded,  parted  with  a  crash.  The  guide 
was  thrown  upon  his  side  on  the  edge  of  the  boat;  the  boat 
careened,  swayed,  swooped  suddenly  aside,  and  the  young 
man,  unable  to  recover  his  balance,  rolled  headlong  into  the 
lake. 

The  Trapper  was  now  thoroughly  aroused.  The  boats 
were  within  a  hundred  rods  of  the  home  line,  and  the  Lad 
was  fully  fifteen  astern.    The  roar  of  the  crowd  was  deaf- 


GO  IT  LAD!"     Page 221. 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  221 

ening.  The  professionals  pulled  like  mad.  The  old  man's 
eyes  fairly  glowed  j  through  the  roar  of  the  multitude  who 
were  literally  frantic  with  excitement,  his  ear  caught  the 
voice  of  Herbert  calling  clear  and  strong :  — 

"  John  Norton,  now  is  your  chance !    PULL  ! " 

The  old  man  gathered  himself  for  a  supreme  effort.  His 
blood  was  up  and  the  lion  in  him  fairly  aroused.  Never  be- 
fore was  such  a  stroke  pulled,  and  never  before  was  such  a 
ca  tastrophe.  The  blades  were  too  broad  to  yield ;  the  boat 
too  heavy  to  get  away  quick  enough  j  the  oars  too  strong 
to  part  at  the  stroke ;  his  tremendous  effort  tore  the  row- 
locks from  the  gunwales  as  if  they  had  been  paper,  and  the 
Trapper  measured  his  length  in  the  bottom  of  the  boat. 

The  catastrophe  was  of  such  an  unexpected  and  over- 
whelming character  that  it  hushed  the  roar  of  the  crowd  as 
if  an  awful  visitation  had  terrified  them  to  silence.  Even 
the  professionals  intermitted  a  stroke  and  the  Lad  turned 
his  face  ahead.  The  old  man  had  risen  and  was  standing 
erect  in  his  boat,  still  holding  the  oars  in  his  mighty  hands. 
His  eyes  flamed ;  his  face  was  bloodless  in  the  whiteness  of 
an  unutterable  rage ;  he  shook  the  heavy  oars  in  the  air  as 
if  they  had  been  reeds,  and  shouted  with  a  voice  that 
sounded  awful  in  its  intensity :  — 

"  Lad,  now  pull  for  the  sake  of  John  Norton  and  save  his 
grey  hairs  from  shame !  Pull  with  every  ounce  of  strength 
the  Almighty  has  given  ye,  or  my  curse  shall  follow  ye  to 
yer  grave ! " 

It  were  worth  a  thousand  miles  of  travel  and  a  year  of 
life  to  see  what  followed.    It  seemed  as  if  the  strength  of 


222  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

the  Trapper,  by  the  medium  of  the  awful  appeal,  had  ac- 
tually been  imparted  to  the  Lad  and  put  at  the  disposal  of 
his  skill.  His  head  suddenly  sat  erect  on  his  shoulders. 
His  body  straightened  as  if  fashioned  in  perfect  symmetry. 
His  stroke  lengthened  to  the  full  reach  of  oar  and  arm. 
The  oars  bent  like  whip-sticks.  The  flash  of  the  blades  on 
the  recovery  was  so  quick  that  the  eye  caught  only  the 
gleam.  His  boat  sprang,  flew,  flashed,  and  as  it  jumped 
past  the  Trapper,  the  old  man  again  wildly  shook  the  oars 
he  clutched  in  his  hands,  and  shouted :  — 

"  Go  it,  Lad  !  The  honor  of  the  woods  be  on  ye !  Give  it 
to  'em  !    Ye'll  beat  'em  yet,  sure  as  Jedgment  Day !  " 

Except  the  voice  of  the  Trapper  not  a  sound  was  heard. 
The  feeling  was  too  intense.  Men  clinched  their  fists  until 
their  nails  cut  the  skin  of  their  palms.  They  never  felt  the 
pain.  Women  fainted  where  they  stood  or  sat.  No  one 
noticed  them.  One  of  the  professionals  threw  up  his  oars, 
crazed  by  the  excitement.  The  other  two  pulled  in  grim 
desperation,  their  faces  white  as  chalk,  but  grit  to  the  last. 
They  pulled,  but  pulled  in  vain.  The  boat  of  the  lad  caught 
them  within  fifty  feet  of  the  line,  and  shot  across  it  half  a 
length  to  the  front. 

The  race  was  over  and  the  rifle  would  stay  in  the 

WOODS  ! 

For  an  instant  not  a  sound  was  heard.  Then  such  a  shout 
went  up  as  was  never  heard  before  from  human  throats. 
The  noise  tore  and  stormed  through  the  still  air,  rolled  and 
reeled  this  way  and  that ;  exploded  again  and  again,  until 
the  very  heavens  quivered  and  shook  j  while  amid  the  up- 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  223 

roar  the  sonorous  voice  of  the  Lad's  hound  sent  forth  its 
gladsome  challenge  as  if  he  shared  the  joy  of  the  crowd 
and  appreciated  the  honor  it  was  paying  to  his  simple- 
minded  master. 

The  "  silent  partner  "  on  the  wharf  spat  out  of  his  mouth 
the  stump  of  the  cigar  which,  without  knowing  it,  he  had 
bitten  in  two  in  his  excitement,  took  a  fresh  one  from  his 
pocket,  lighted  it,  and  muttered  to  himself,  — 

"  I'M  GLAD  I  HEDGED !  " 


CHAPTEE  VIII. 

THE  LAD'S  TRIUMPH. 

"Your  grace  has  laid  the  odds  on  the  weaker  side." 

Shakespeare. 

rpHE  scene  which  followed  is  indescribable.  Hats  and 
caps  went  into  the  air  in  clouds,  handkerchiefs  fairly 
whitened  the  shores,  the  wharf,  and  the  front  of  the  hotel, 
men  yelled  and  women  clapped  their  hands,  dogs  barked 
and  guns  exploded,  while  amid  the  uproar,  confusion  and 
babel  of  indistinguishable  noises,  in  some  way  —  no  one 
could  tell  precisely  how  —  the  boats  of  the  contestants 
reached  the  landing,  and  the  oarsmen,  every  one  of  them 
save  the  Old  Trapper,  white  and  tremulous  from  their  tre- 
mendous effort,  stepped  or  were  helped  ashore. 

The  crowd,  like  all  American  crowds,  when  greatly  and 
happily  excited,  was  generous  to  an  excess,  and  gave  to 
each  a  reception  whose  warmth  and  enthusiasm  were  suffi- 
cient to  have  broken  down  the  barrier  of  professional  pride, 
and  remove  from  vanity  itself  the  sting  of  defeat.  Even 
the  professional  who  had  lost  his  head  in  the  awful  excite- 
ment of  the  last  moment,  and  thrown  up  his  oars  in  mental 
bewilderment,  was  not  excluded  from  the  ovation,  for  it 
was  felt  that  the  circumstances  had  been  so  extraordinary 
that  it  furnished  an  ample  excuse  for  his  aberration.  In- 
deed, the  crowd  felt  that  every  man  had  done  his  best,  and 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  225 

given  an  exhibition  of  skill  and  pluck  seldom  witnessed, 
and  were  determined  to  slight  no  one  in  the  award  of  their 
praise. 

But  it  was  evident  that  if  the  Lad  had  won  the  prize  the 
Trapper,  in  the  latent  thought  of  the  spectators,  still  car- 
ried the  honors  of  the  race ;  for  the  ease  with  which  he 
had  pulled  the  race  up  to  the  moment  of  the  catastrophe, 
and  the  astonishing  exhibition  of  strength  which  had  caused 
it,  had  made  such  an  impression  on  every  one,  that  all  were 
unanimous  in  the  feeling  that  but  for  the  mishap,  the  old 
man  would  surely  have  won  the  prize  himself.  As  to  the 
exhibition  of  the  skill  and  energy  of  the  Lad,  there  was  but 
one  opinion  ;  nothing  like  it  had  ever  been  seen.  The  dis- 
tance he  was  behind  when  the  Trapper  yelled  for  him  to 
pull ;  the  weight  of  his  boat,  increased  as  it  was  by  the 
weight  of  his  hound ;  the  vim  and  grit  with  which  the  two 
professionals  fought  it  out;  all  these  points  and  others 
were  mentioned  by  the  crowd  in  swift  succession,  and  tbe 
more  they  thought  of  it  the  more  astonishing  did  the  per- 
formance seem.  Had  they  not  seen  it,  they  would  not  ha>  e 
believed  it.  The  professionals  themselves  said  that  they 
did  not  understand  it.  That  he  came  in  ahead  they  ad- 
mitted, but  how  he  did  it  they  could  not  tell.  The  "  silent" 
partner,  when  questioned  by  his  panting  companions  them- 
selves, took  the  "  Victoria  "  he  was  coolly  smoking,  from 
his  mouth,  drew  them  quietly  aside,  and  while  a  gleam 
came  into  his  eyes,  said :  — 

"  The  fool  has  the  champion  stroke  of  the  world.  I  saw 
it  as  he  went  down  the  Lake."    And  then  he  looked  steadily 


226  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

for  a  moment  into  the  anxious  faces  of  his  friends,  knocked 
the  ashes  from  his  cigar  and  said  in  the  calmest  of  tones  : 
"  Don't  worry.    I  hedged  ! " 

At  the  landing  the  tumult  was  uproarious.  Above  the 
heads  of  the  jam  the  countenance  and  shoulders  of  the 
Trapper  could  be  seen,  while  his  arm  was  stretched  to  its 
fullest  length  to  reach  the  extended  hand  of  Herbert,  who 
was  vainly  struggling  to  get  to  his  side. 

"  Yis,  yis,  boy ! "  shouted  the  Trapper,  "  I  know  what  ye 
would  say,  but  luck  was  agin  me.  It  was  the  Lad's  day  for 
sartin.  Did  ye  see  him  pull,  Henry,  arter  I  yelled  at  him  ? 
Was  there  ever  sech  a  stroke  and  sech  a  gather  on  the  arth 
afore !  Didn't  I  tell  ye  we'd  have  some  fun  on  this  trip  f 
And  the  pond  of  the  beavers,  do  you  remember  the  pond  of 
the  beavers,  boy  ?  "  And  the  old  man  laughed  with  ex- 
tended mouth,  while,  in  the  ecstasy  of  his  happiness,  he 
continued  to  wring  the  hand  of  his  companion,  whose  face 
was  as  radiant  as  his  own,  and  whose  grasp  was  nearly  as 
strong. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  Lad  was  sitting  in  his  boat,  witn 
his  face  still  white  from  the  effects  of  his  recent  effort,  and 
shrinking  timidly  back  from  the  extended  hands  that  would 
fain  have  lifted  him  bodily  upon  their  shoulders  and  borne 
him  into  the  hotel  in  triumph. 

"  Stand  aside,  stand  aside ! "  shouted  the  Trapper,  as  he 
pushed  his  way  through  the  jam  as  if  they  who  composed 
it  had  been  only  reeds  on  a  marsh,  "stand  aside  for  a  minit 
and  let  the  arms  of  the  man  he  saved  from  bitter  thoughts, 
lift  the  boy  from  the  boat.    Come,  boy,"  continued  the  Trap- 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  227 

per,  "let  the  man  who  lost  the  prize  by  his  foolishness, 
carry  ye  ashore,  and  bear  ye  to  the  jedges,  who  are  waitin' 
to  give  ye  the  prize." 

So  saying,  the  old  man  with  no  more  effort  than  if  he  had 
been  lifting  a  babe,  swung  the  Lad  up  to  his  shoulders,  and 
facing  the  crowd  he  shouted :  — 

"  Here  be  the  one  who  calls  himself  '  The  Man  Who  Don't 
Know  Much,'  but  that  he  knows  enough  to  pull  a  four  mile 
race  is  mortally  sartin.  And  when  he  comes  out  agin  with 
his  pelts  I  know  ye  will  remember  bis  deed  tbis  day,  and 
treat  him  as  he  desarves ;  for  he  has  made  good  the  honor 
of  the  woods  agin  strangers,  and  kept  us  who  be  of  the 
wilderness,  whether  trappers  or  guides,  from  shame." 

The  answering  cheer  of  the  men  who  were  around  him, 
rising  loud  and  long,  satisfied  the  Trapper,  and  as  he  started 
up  the  bank  and  pushed  on  to  the  front  of  the  hotel  where 
the  judges  were  he  said,  "  Ye  bear  'em,  Lad,  ye  hear  'em ! 
There'll  be  no  more  laughin'  at  ye  when  ye  bring  out  yer 
pelts,  fur  ye  be  a  man  among  men  arter  this,  for  mortals  git 
fame  by  an  act,  and  a  single  deed  can  keep  their  memory 
better  than  the  hewed  stuns  in  the  grave-yards  of  the  set- 
tlements. Here  I  be,  and  here's  the  Lad,"  said  the  old 
Trapper  as  he  planted  the  boy  by  his  side  in  front  of  tbe 
judges.  "  Here's  the  Lad  who  won  the  race,  and  it  may  be 
ye  have  somethin'  to  say  to  him." 

"Young  man,"  said  the  chairman,  who  stood  holding  a 
beautiful  rifle  in  his  hand,  of  the  breech-loading  pattern 
whose  fame  for  accuracy  and  range  had  just  begun  to  chal- 
lenge the  admiration  of  tbe  world,  as  it  has  since  retained 
it,  "  young  man,  who  are  you  ? " 


228  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

The  Lad  lifted  his  eyes  from  the  ground  on  which  they 
had  been  steadfastly  fixed,  and  looking  timidly  into  the  face 
of  the  speaker,  said  in  a  deprecating  voice,  "I  be  The  Man 
Who  Don't  Know  Much." 

The  gentleman  regarded  him  for  a  moment  amid  a  still- 
ness which  enabled  each  word  to  be  plainly  heard  by  every 
person  in  the  immense  throng,  and  then  said  :  — 

"Where  were  you  born,  my  boy,  and  where  are  your 
parents  ? " 

"  I  was  born  by  the  sea  in  the  state  of  Connecticut,"  re- 
sponded the  Lad  in  his  peculiar,  quiet,  halting  manner  of 
speech,  "  where  father  lives  still,  I  guess,  but  mother  has 
gone  away  to  heaven." 

A  slight  tremble  of  agitation  rustled  through  the  crowd 
at  the  answer  of  the  Lad,  and  one  old  chap  standing  in  the 
inner  circle,  and  whose  highly  colored  visage  gave  unmis- 
takable evidence  of  his  habits,  jammed  his  thumb  and  fore- 
finger into  his  eyes,  and,  passing  them  downward,  blew  a 
clarion  blast  from  his  nose  muttering  somethiug  about 
the  "  blasted  sun  shining  inter  a  feller's  eyes  so  he  can't  see 
anything." 

"  Where  did  you  learn  to  row,  and  who  taught  you  your 
stroke  ? "  said  the  gentleman. 

"  I  never  learnt  to  row,  as  I  know  of,"  replied  the  Lad ; 
"  and  no  one  ever  told  me  anything  about  a  stroke ;  but  I 
always  loved  to  be  on  the  water,  for  the  water  never  laughs 
at  me,  nor  calls  me  names,  and  I  guess  it  come  sort  of  nat- 
ural for  me  to  pull  a  boat." 

"  That's  it,  jedge,  that's  it,"  interrupted  the  Trapper.    "  It 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  229 

comes  nateral  for  the  Lad  to  pull,  and  the  Lord  has  sartinlj* 
gin  him  gifts  at  rowin',  as  he  has  the  otter  at  divin',  and  a 
beaver  in  steerin' ;  for  there's  an  old  dog  beaver  on  a  leetle 
pond,  nigh  the  Dreary  Lake,  that  manages  to  steer  himself 
without  a  tail,  for  he  left  it  in  my  trap  two  year  ago ;  and 
a  beaver  must  sartinly  be  gifted  in  steerin'  if  he  can  navi- 
gate himself,  especially  in  a  current,  without  his  tail.  Yis, 
specially  in  a  current,"  reiterated  the  Trapper,  and  he 
laughed  to  himself  in  his  own  noiseless  fashion. 

"  Well,  young  man,"  continued  the  gentleman,  "  you  have 
certainly  won  the  race,  and  in  a  most  wonderful  manner ; 
for  you  have  won  it  against  men  who  make  the  art  of  row- 
ing a  study,  and  follow  it  as  a  profession.  And  you  are  en- 
titled to  this  beautiful  rifle  which  was  offered  as  the  prize 
to  him  who  should  win  the  race.  Can  you  shoot  any,  young 
man  ? " 

"  I  can't  shoot  as  well  as  Henry,  or  John  Norton,"  said 
the  Lad ;  "  and  I  suppose  there  are  many  men  here  who 
can  shoot  better  than  I  can ;  but  I  like  to  shoot,  and  I  shoot 
a  great  deal  better  than  I  did  a  year  ago." 

"  Well,  well,  my  boy,  I'm  glad  to  hear  that  you  love  to 
shoot,  for  this  rifle  has  been  thoroughly  tested  by  the 
maker,  and  he  says  it  will  shoot  a  mile  and  kill.  And  in 
presenting  it  to  you,  in  the  name  of  the  donors,  allow  me, 
in  their  name,  to  express  the  hope  that  you  will  find  it  a 
noble  piece,  and  learn  to  shoot  as  well  as  you  can  row." 
And  the  gentleman  advanced  and  placed  the  rifle  in  the 
hands  of  the  Lad,  and  then  stepping  back,  stood  as  if  ex- 
pecting some  reply. 


230  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

The  Lad  stood  a  moment  holding  the  prize  in  his  hands 
as  if  he  could  not  realize  that  it  was  his,  and  then,  as  if  his 
mind  had  slowly  taken  in  the  meaning  of  what  had  been 
said  to  him,  and  more  yet,  of  the  silence,  he  looked  timidly 
up  at  the  crowd,  and  then  he  turned  his  eyes  appealingly  to 
the  Trapper.  The  old  man  understood  the  entreaty  of  the 
look  and  said :  — 

"  Ye  see,  jedge,  the  Lad  isn't  much  at  talkin',  for  his  gifts 
don't  lie  in  that  direction ;  but  ye  may  take  the  word  of 
an  old  man  that  he  thanks  ye  all  the  same  and  will  sartinly 
use  the  piece  as  a  man  should  who  arns  his  livin'  by  the  use 
of  his  wepon  and  his  traps.  And  now  if  ye  haven't  more 
to  say  to  the  Lad  we'll  go  to  our  camp,  for  it's  too  crowded 
and  noisy  here  to  suit  one  of  my  gifts,  and  besides  the  sun 
is  settin',  and  the  wood  for  the  night  must  be  got  in,  and 
supper  cooked.  Come,  Henry ;  come,  Lad  j  let's  git  to  the 
boat." 

So  saying,  the  Trapper  and  his  two  companions  entered 
their  boat,  the  Lad  at  the  oars,  and  the  Trapper  at  the  pad- 
dle, as  usual,  while  Herbert  and  the  hound  occupied  the 
middle.  The  boat  turned  the  angle  of  the  wharf  and 
headed  up  the  Lake,  the  Trapper  wielding  his  paddle  with  a 
natural  grace  that  no  art  could  imitate,  and  the  Lad  pulling 
the  same  long,  leisurely  stroke  that  had  drawn  the  eyes  of 
the  professionals  to  it  the  day  before.  Not  until  the  boat 
had  disappeared  behind  the  Three  Sisters  did  the  crowd 
cease  to  watch  its  receding  form,  but  when  it  had  passed 
behind  the  islands  and  disappeared  from  view,  the  throng 
broke  mp  into  knots,  and  until  late  in  the  evening  continued 
to  canvass  the  day's  proceedings. 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  231 

It  was  evening,  and  on  an  island  that  lay  half  way  down 
the  Lake  our  three  friends  had  made  their  camp  and  were 
now  seated  around  their  cheerful  fire  conversing  upon  the 
great  event  of  the  day.  The  strong  blaze  brought  out  their 
faces  in  clear  relief,  revealing  the  features  of  each,  and  even 
the  changing  expressions  of  their  countenances  as  they  came 
and  went,  as  the  conversation  proceeded.  Now  and  then 
the  countenance  of  the  sturdy  Old  Trapper  would  yield  to 
the  pressure  of  his  inward  mirth,  and  his  mouth  would  open 
to  its  widest  stretch,  while  his  body  swayed  to  and  fro, 
showing  that  he  was  fairly  convulsed  with  laughter  although 
his  mouth  emitted  scarcely  a  sound.  His  two  companions 
yielded  with  all  the  abandon  of  woodmen  to  the  moods  of 
their  companion,  and  the  roars  of  Herbert  and  the  shorter 
and  quicker  cachinnations  of  the  Lad,  revealed  how  entirely 
they  were  surrendering  themselves  to  the  hilarity  of  the 
occasion. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Lad,"  exclaimed  the  Old  Man,  "  ye  gin  it  to 
them  in  a  way  they'll  never  forgit  till  their  dyin'  day.  I 
sartinly  thought  etarnity  had  come  when  I  went  into  the 
bottom  of  the  boat,  for  I'd  sot  onto  them  oars  in  a  business 
sort  of  a  way,  and  the  thump  I  got  riled  me  tremendously. 
I  was  madder  nor  a  hornet  punched  out  of  his  nest  by  a 
pole,  when  I  ris  up,  and  I  jest  hopped  round  in  that  boat 
and  yelled  like  a  Huron  at  a  war  dance.  They  actally  say 
that  I  flourished  them  oars  as  a  Dutch  woman  does  her 
broom-stick  when  a  neighbor's  cow  is  rummaging  among 
the  bean-pods  in  her  garden.  Did  I  do  it,  Henry  ?  tell  me, 
boy,  did  I  actally  do  it  ? " 


232  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

"  You  did,  for  certain,"  answered  Herbert,  laughing  until 
he  fairly  choked ;  yes,  you  did  flourish  them  over  your  head 
like  whip  sticks,  and  you  fairly  hopped  up  and  down  iu  the 
boat  as  if  you  were  crazy,  John  Norton,  although  at  the 
time  no  one  noticed  it ;  for  you  see  we  were  all  mightily 
wrought  up,  and  what  seems  funny  to  think  of  now  that  it 
is  all  over,  seemed  only  natural  and  fitting  at  the  moment 
it  occurred.  I  never  saw  such  excitement,  and  doubt  if  I 
ever  do  again.  I  was  cool  enough  until  your  rowlocks  gave 
way,  but  then  I  became  as  wild  as  the  rest.  My  own  ribs 
seemed  to  crack  when  you  went  into  the  bottom  of  your 
boat." 

"  Did  they  !  did  they ! "  ejaculated  the  Trapper,  "  you  see, 
I  had  reckoned  for  sartin  on  yer  guide's  winnin',  Henry,  for 
the  boy  has  a  stroke  eeuamost  as  good  as  yourn,  and  he's  a 
ripper  to  pull,  and  I  thought  the  race  was  in  our  own  hands. 
I  had  detarmined  the  young  man  should  win,  as  he  sar- 
tinly  would,  hadn't  it  been  for  that  pesky  oar ;  but  when  I 
seed  him  roll  into  the  Lake,  and  I  heerd  the  sound  of  yer 
voice,  Henry,  callin'  on  me  to  let  out,  it  stirred  every  drop 
of  blood  in  my  skin,  and  I  pulled  an  onreasonable  stroke. 
When  I  called  on  the  Lad  my  grit  was  up  as  if  I  was  in  the 
smoke  of  a  scrimmage,  with  the  odds  agin  me.  Lord-a- 
massy  !  how  strange  it  is  that  mortal  man,  and  a  man  whose 
head  is  whitenin',  too,  should  git  so  arnest  over  sech  a  play- 
ful matter." 

"I  think,"  said  the  Lad,  "I  ought  to  give  the  rifle  to 
Fred.  I  know  he  wanted  it  badly,  and  he  would  have  won 
the  race  if  it  hadn't  been  for  his  oar's  breaking.  Don't  you 
think  I  had  better  give  it  to  him,  John  Norton  ? " 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  233 

"  Not  by  a  long  shot ! "  returned  the  Trapper,  "  ye  won 
the  race,  and  won  it  when  Done  of  the  rest  of  us  could  win 
it,  and  the  rifle  is  yourn  by  right,  and  yourn  it  shall  be  till 
yer  dyin'  day.  And  may  the  Lord  of  marcy  keep  that  day 
far  from  ye,  Lad,  till  yer  face  is  as  wrinkled  and  yer  head 
as  white  as  mine." 

"  But,"  responded  the  Laa,  whose  face  became  almost 
beautiful  as  the  light  of  the  sweet  thought  within  him 
flashed  into  it,  fairly  illuminating  its  ordinarily  simple  list- 
lessness,  "  the  Bible  says  it's-'more-blessed-to-give-than-to- 
receive,'  and  I'm  sure  it's  an  easy  way  to  be  blessed  to  give 
away  a  gun  that  only  cost  me  a  few  strokes  to  win." 

"  I  tell  ye,  Lad,"  exclaimed  the  Trapper —  "  the  Lord  for- 
give me  for  sayin'  it,  if  it  be  wrong,  —  but  the  Bible  don't 
say  any  thing  about  boat  racin',  and  yer  Scriptur'  will  be  the 
death  of  ye  yit.  No,  no,  ye  don't  git  the  true  trail  of  the 
varses  Lad.  It's  downright  foolishness,  and  I  conceit  that 
it's  actally  sin  for  a  young  man  like  ye,  to  give  away  a  rifle 
that's  worth  forty  mink  skins  and  can  send  a  bullet  a  mile 
and  kill.  I  tell  ye,  Lad,  the  Scriptur'  is  all  right  if  ye  un- 
derstand it  and  be  strong  headed  enough  to  hold  it  steady, 
but  if  ye  aint,  it's  like  a  overloaded  rifle  to  a  weak  shoulder; 
it  hurts  the  man  who  uses'it  more  than  it  does  the  feller  at 
the  other  eend.  Good  common  sense  is  better  than  Scriptur' 
in  matters  of  rifles  and  rowin'." 

"But,"  returned  the  Lad,  "it  will  do  Fred,  more  good  than 
it  will  me,  besides  —  " 

"  How  do  ye  know  ?  How  do  ye  know  ?"  interrupted  the 
Trapper,  "  how  do  ye  know  that  the  boy  has  any  gifts  in 


234  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

handlin'  the  piece,  and  what  right  has  any  man  with  a 
grooved  barrel  if  the  Lord  hasn't  given  him  the  right  idee 
of  the  wepon." 

"  But  how  do  you  know  I  can  shoot  any  better  than  Fred, 
can  ?    You  never  saw  me  shoot." 

"  Hoot,  hoot,"  retorted  the  Trapper,  "  Didn't  you  show 
me  a  roll  of  skins  ye  had  hid  in  the  holler  pine  on  Toma 
hawk  Pint,  and  didn't  I  note  that  them  which  didn't  show 
marks  of  the  trap  had  three  holes  in  the  head,  instead  of 
the  two  the  Creatur  had  put  in  'em.  A  man  must  have 
gifts  to  put  his  bullet  through  the  head  of  a  mink,  in  the 
shade  and  shine  of  actual  shootin';  and  when  ye  emptied 
yer  piece  at  Pine  Eidge,  day  afore  yesterday,  to  freshen  yer 
loadin',  didn't  I  see  the  knot  ye  shot  at,  and  that  ye  drove 
yer  bullet  into  the  very  hole  where  the  stem  once  stood. 
I  sartinly  don't  conceit  that  ye  can  shoot  as  well  as  Henry 
here,  whose  gift  is  onusual,  and  whose  piece  is  parfect ;  nor 
as  well  as  myself,  whose  eye  has  knowed  leetle  but  the 
sights  for  sixty  year,  and  whose  narves  has  been  steadied 
on  the  scout,  and  in  the  scrimmage ;  but  ye  sartinly  have 
the  gift  in  ye,  and  while  I  don't  expect  ye  will  ever  handle 
the  rifle  as  ye  can  the  oars  —  still,  be  governed,  Lad,  by  the 
jedgment  of  an  old  man  and  don't  fool  away  a  promisin' 
piece  for  the  sake  of  a  few  varses  of  Scriptur'.  For  al- 
though it  don't  load  at  the  right  eend  to  suit  my  notions,  yit 
Henry  says  the  barrel  is  a  good  un,  and  ye  remember  that 
the  jedge  said  it  would  carry  the  lead  furder  than  man 
could  see." 

"  What  about  the  match  to-morrow  ? "  queried  Herbert 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  235 

"  Didn't  I  hear  you  half  promise  the  judges  you  would  come 
down  and  shoot  for  the  purse,  and  if  you  do  why  shouldn't 
the  Lad  shoot  with  the  rifle  he  has  won  to-day  ?  " 

"  Yis,  yis,  Henry,"  replied  the  old  man,  "  I  did  sort  of 
promise,  —  that  is,  I  said  we  would  come  down  and  see  the 
shootin',  but  I  didn't  say  we  would  shoot,  and  I  told  'em 
why.  For  I  didn't  think  it  fair  that  you  and  me  should 
shoot  agin  the  boys  and  the  city  folks,  for  ye  know  they 
couldn't  git  a  thing  if  we  was  onreasonable  enough  to  shoot 
agin  'em.  — Lord-a-massy,  how  careless  they  do  handle  tbeir 
paddles  on  the  Saranac !  That  bungler  has  grazed  the  rim 
of  his  boat  three  times  in  as  many  minits,  or  my  ears  have 
growed  up.  A  bell  on  the  end  of  his  paddle-staff  wouldn't 
make  more  noise.  Do  the  fools  think  we  be  asleep  like  a 
Frencher  in  a  drunken  fit,  that  they  must  make  such  a 
racket  comin'  into  our  camp." 

"  Camp  ahoy  !  "  cried  a  voice  from  the  darkness. 

"  What  of  it,  what  of  it  1 "  returned  the  Trapper,  f*  Don't 
stay  there  calliu'  with  a  voice  ye  might  hear  to  the  Upper 
Carry.  We  heerd  ye  comin'  afore  ye  started,  and  the  noise 
ye  made  as  ye  came  up  the  Lake  eenamost  drowned  our 
talhin'.    Come  in,  come  in,  and  tell  us  what  ye  want ! " 

"  You  don't  compliment  the  paddling  of  my  guide  much, 
John  Norton,"  said  a  man,  as  he  sprang  ashore  and  joined 
the  group  at  the  fire,  "  we  didn't  expect  you  knew  of  our 
appearance  until  I  hailed,  for  I'm  sure  we  came  in  very 
still  —  " 

"  Still ! "  interrupted  the  old  man,  "  I  heerd  the  gratin'  of 
his  paddle  shaft  agin  the  boat  when  ye  passed  the  Three 


236  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

Sisters,  and  that's  a  mile  away  if  it's  a  rod.  And  ye've  spit  a 
dozen  times  sence  then,  if  ye  have  once,  not  to  speak  of 
the  noise  ye  make  when  ye  hitched  on  yer  seat,  and  the 
crack  of  yer  match  when  ye  lit  yer  cigar.  I've  seed  the 
time  on  this  lake  when  a  dozen  Huron  canoes  would  have 
been  hangin'  round  yer  wake  had  ye  so  much  as  rubbed  yer 
hands  on  the  legs  of  yer  breeches  or  moved  yer  foot  on  the 
bottom  of  yer  boat  on  a  night  like  this  j  but  what  do  ye 
want,  and  what  can  we  do  for  ye  ? " 

"  I  have  come,"  said  the  man,  "  by  the  request  of  the 
judges  of  the  matches  to-morrow,  to  urge  you  and  your 
two  companions  to  enter  the  list  and  shoot  for  the  prizes. 
The  shooting  will  be  at  all  distances,  from  fifty  to  a  thou- 
sand yards,  and  there's  twenty  prizes  in  all,  from  a  flask  of 
powder  to  a  purse  of  a  hundred  dollars  in  gold,  and  every- 
body says  you  must  come  or  the  affair  will  be  a  failure. 
All  of  us  have  heard  of  your  skill,  old  Trapper,  and  hun- 
dreds of  people,  some  of  them  foreigners,  have  staid  over 
just  because  you  are  to  shoot,  and  the  judges  say  you  must 
come." 

For  a  minute  or  two  the  Trapper  made  no  reply,  but  sat 
gazing  into  the  fire,  then  lifting  his  eyes  to  the  face  of  the 
messenger  he  said,  "  Now,  friend,  John  Norton  never  lost  a 
chance  to  shoot  in  his  life  if  it  was  just  and  reasonable  for 
him  to  do  it,  and  many  be  the  matches  I  have  shot,  and 
many  be  the  pounds  of  powder  and  bars  of  lead  I  have 
won,  not  to  speak  of  money  and  other  things  which  stir  the 
pride  and  vanity  of  man,  but  I  ax  ye,  if  it  would  be  fair  to  the 
rest,  for  Henry,  here,  whose  piece  is  parfect  and  gifts  on 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  237 

usual,  and  me,  who  have  used  a  rifle  for  nigh  on  seventy 
year,  to  shoot  agin  boys  and  city  folks  who  can't  be  ex- 
pected to  know  how  to  bring  out  the  fine  pints  of  a  rifle, 
and  who  have  sot  their  hearts  on  the  prizes  ? " 

"  But,  John  Norton,"  returned  the  man  earnestly,  "  you 
mistake  —  some  of  the  best  shots  in  the  woods,  and  a  half 
a  dozen  gentlemen  from  the  cities  with  great  reputation  for 
skill,  are  entered.  And  better  yet,  two  Englishmen,  who 
have  won  prizes  in  their  own  land  and  have  never  been 
beaten,  have  entered  also.  Indeed  the  betting  is  two  to 
one  in  their  favor.  And  the  ladies  are  crazy  to  see  you 
shoot,  and  charged  me  to  say  that  you  must  come  down  and 
contend  for  their  prizes,  at  least,  a  hundred  golden  dollars 
in  a  silken  purse  and  a  horn  of  solid  silver  with  a  deer  and 
hound  in  full  chase  engraved  on  it.  -If  you  don't  come  down 
they  declare  they  will  come  up  in  a  body  and  bring  you 
down  in  the  morning." 

"Well,  well,"  returned  the  Trapper  laughing,  "if  the 
wimmen  folks  are  raally  in  arnest  in  the  matter,  and  if 
'twill  make  them  happier  to  see  an  old  man  shoot,  they 
shall  have  their  way  for  sartin ;  so  tell  them  that  we  will 
come  down  and  jine  in  the  fun,  me  and  Henry  and  the  Lad, 
all  three  of  us.  The  gold  is  nothin',  but  the  Englishers 
shant  git  the  horn  if  a  man  who  has  spent  his  life  in  the 
woods  can  win  it.  But  I  give  ye  notice  —  and  ye  may  tell 
'em  so  —  that  the  raal  trial  will  be  atween  Henry  and  me." 

"  They  want  the  Lad  to  bring  the  rifle  he  won  to-day  and 
shoot  too,"  said  the  messenger  as  he  turned  toward  his 
boat. 


238  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

11  Aye,  aye,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  The  Lad  will  be  there, 
and  they'll  hear  the  voice  of  the  piece  when  the  talkin'  be- 
gins." 


THE   STORY  OF 

THE  MAN  WHO  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH. 

Part  II. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   SHOOTING  MATCH. 

"  And  still  as  each  repeated  pleasure  tired, 
Succeeding  sports  the  mirthful  band  inspired." 

Goldsmith. 

rpHE  morning  opened  bright  and  clear,  and  every  indica- 
tion pointed  to  an  eventful  day.  The  best  inarksmen 
of  the  woods  were  there,  guides  and  sportsmen  alike,  and 
among  them  not  a  few  were  known  to  be  extraordinary 
shots  and  good  at  all  distances.  The  prizes  were  numerous 
and  so  divided  among  different  classes,  that  nearly  every 
one  who  had  skill  in  shooting  might  enter  for  some  one  of 
them,  with  a  fair  expectation  of  success.  Local  pride  and 
personal  favoritism  were  warmly  enlisted  in  connection  with 
many  of  the  contestants,  and  each  group  of  heated  parti- 
sans warmly  backed  their  man.  The  two  great  prizes  were 
to  be  shot  for  after  the  minor  ones  had  been  allotted.  The 
former  was  named  the  "  Long  Eange  "  prize,  because  the 
distances  to  be  shot  by  the  contestants  for  it,  were  five 
hundred  and  one  thousand  yards.  This  was  a  distance  far 
greater  than  any  of  the  guides,  or  sportsmen  either,  had 
ever  seen  shot,  and  the  majority  of  them  unhesitatingly  de- 
clared that  "  there  wasn't  a  rifle  made  that  could  throw  a 
bullet  a  thousand  yards." 
One  old  fellow  known  as  "  Old  Bill,"  whose  reputation  for 


242  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

close  shooting  and  hard  drinking  was  universal,  declared 
that  u  a  feller  would  have  to  climb  a  tree  to  see  the  mark 
at  such  a  distance."  And  when  pressed  by  a  young  man 
with  the  assertion  that  the  Englishmen  would  certainly 
shoot  the  distance,  admitted  that  "them  darned  Englishers 
might  possibly  do  it,  if  they  had  fetched  in  cannon,  but  no 
regular  rifle,  sech  as  a  decent  man  wanted  to  lift,  could 
throw  lead  any  sech  distance,  nohow." 

Indeed,  it  was  universally  understood  by  the  crowd  that 
ths  long  range  prize  was  especially  gotten  up  for  the  "  fur- 
riners,"  as  the  guides  called  them,  and  that  no  one  would 
enter  against  them.  This  had  been  the  feeling  up  to  the 
time  the  messenger  returned  from  the  Trapper's  camp ;  but 
when  he  had  got  in,  and  standing  on  the  front  steps  of  the 
hotel  announced  to  the  hundreds  who  had  been  eagerly 
awaiting  his  coming,  what  John  Norton  had  told  him  to  say 
—  which  he  did,  like  a  true  herald,  word  for  word  —  the 
state  of  opinion  underwent  a  sudden  change,  and  a  great 
excitement  sprang  up.  If  the  announcement  had  simply 
been  that  the  Trapper  himself  was  to  shoot,  it  would  have 
entirely  changed  the  aspect  of  things,  but  when  it  was  pro- 
claimed that  Herbert  was  to  join  in  the  shooting,  and  that 
even  the  Lad  would  compete,  with  his  new  rifle,  it  was  felt 
by  all  that  new,  unknown,  but  potent  elements  had  been 
introduced  into  the  problem.  As  to  the  abilities  of  the  Lad, 
all  were  in  entire  ignorance ;  but  after  a  thorough  canvass- 
ing of  the  possibilities  the  prospects  were  pronounced  as 
against  him  :  for  his  physical  shape,  his  youth  and  timidity 
were  all  considered  as  precluding  the  possibility  of  success 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  243 

against  such  men  as  he  must  contend  with.  Still,  every  one 
felt  kindly  toward  him  and  wished  him  luck. 

Of  Herbert  more  was  known,  and  what  was  known  was 
all  in  his  favor.  Gentlemen  there  were  who  had  seen  him 
shoot  in  target  practice  on  the  club  ground,  and  some  of 
them  in  prize  matches,  and  they  declared  he  had  never  yet 
lost  a  match,  and,  barring  accidents,  could  not  be  beaten 
by  anybody  at  long  range  shooting,  they  didn't  care  who 
the  man  might  be.  Guides  there  were  who  had  seen  him 
shoot  in  actual  hunting,  by  day  and  night,  in  heat  and  cold, 
on  land  and  when  tossing  about  in  his  light  boat  on  uneven 
waters ;  and  with  these  there  was  but  one  opinion,  and  that 
was,  that  shooting  his  own  rifle  he  was  the  quickest  and 
surest  shot  that  ever  came  into  the  woods,  and  that  old 
John  Norton  himself  couldn't  beat  him.  These  views  they 
backed  to  the  full  extent  of  their  means. 

On  the  other  hand,  many  —  and  these  represented  the 
majority,  —  believed  that  the  Englishmen  would  certainly 
win  the  long  range  prize,  and  that  the  Trapper  would  as 
surely  take  the  silver  horn.  But  whatever  might  be  the 
views  of  the  individuals  that  composed  the  crowd,  all  were 
agreed  in  the  opinion  that  the  morrow  would  prove  a  great 
event,  and  the  shooting  be  the  best  ever  seen  in  the  wilder- 
ness. 

The  professionals  who  had  pulled  in  the  race  the  day  be- 
fore had,  with  their  companion,  remained  over  to  see  the 
shooting,  and  for  the  "  excitement  of  the  thing,"  as  the  im- 
perturbable gambler  affirmed.  But,  for  once  in  his  life,  he 
was  actually  in  doubt  how  to  proceed,  and  his  disgust  was 


244  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

correspondingly  profound ;  but  his  ears  were  open  to  every 
remark  made  by  those  who  knew  anything  of  the  principal 
parties  in  the  match,  and  a  close  observer  might  have 
noticed  that  leisurely  as  we're  his  movements,  nevertheless, 
his  quiet,  placid  face  could  be  seen  on  the  edge  of  every 
group  as  soon  as  it  was  formed.  At  last  he  drew  his  com- 
panions aside  and  said  oracularly,  but  with  the  quietest  of 
tones :  — 

"  Herbert  wins  the  Long  Eange,  but  hedge  on  the  Trap- 
per. The  Old  Trapper  will  probably  win  the  horn,  but  hedge 
heavy  on  Herbert."  So  saying  he  took  the  cigar  from  his 
mouth,  flung  it  into  the  grass,  and  mounted  the  stairway 
leading  to  his  room. 

There  was  one  matter  which  quickened  intensely  the  in- 
terest of  the  crowd  :  for  while  the  conditions  of  the  shoot- 
ing for  every  other  prize  were  duly  advertised  in  the  pro- 
grammes which  had  been  posted  up  by  the  Committee  of 
Arrangements  in  every  convenient  locality,  the  conditions 
of  the  contest  for  the  Silver  Horn  were  not  announced,  save 
that  it  was  stated  "  that  the  shooting  for  this  prize,  given  by 
the  fair  ladies  of  the  hotel,"  as  the  announcement  gallantly 
read,  "  would  be  at  distances  not  exceeding  forty  rods,  and 
must  be  done  off-hand."  And  then  the  poster  significantly 
added  :  "  If  the  shooting  be  close  there  will  be  several  con- 
tests of  an  unusual  character,  which  will  not  be  announced 
until  the  emergencies  of  the  competition  elicit  them."  It  is 
impossible  to  say  whether  the  extraordinary  vagueness  of 
the  announcement,  or  the  language  in  which  it  was  written, 
caused  the  most  comment  among  those  whose  education 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  245 

had  been  of  too  limited  a  character  to  make  their  tongues 
familiar  with  polysyllabic  words.  The  probability  is  that 
the  feelings  of  the  largest  part  of  the  native  population 
were  expressed  by  a  young  guide  from  Brown's  Tract,  who, 
after  deliberately  and  rather  painfully  spelling  out  the  "  An- 
nouncement," turned  to  a  companion,  a  little  less  cultured 
than  himself,  with  the  startling  interrogation :  "  I  say,  Bill, 
who  is  this  feller  they  call  Emergencies,  anyway?  I  haint 
never  heerd  of  him,  has  you  ? " 

It  was  ten  o'clock  of  the  morning,  and  the  shooting  was 
to  begin  at  half  past  ten.  The  several  'distances  had  all 
been  measured,  the  targets  prepared,  the  markers  and 
judges  appointed,  and  everything  was  ready.  The  thou- 
sand-yard range  had  been  measured  —  approximately, — 
and  it  stretched  from  the  lawn  in  front  of  the  hotel  to  a 
large  rock  on  the  opposite  side  of  and  some  distance  up 
the  lake.  From  the  wharf  to  the  target-rock,  buoys  had 
beeu  anchored,  at  the  distance  of  five  rods  apart,  into  which 
little  flag  staffs,  some  five  feet  high,  were  set,  while  to  the 
top  of  each  was  attached  a  crimson  colored  streamer.  This 
had  been  done  at  the  request  of  the  Englishmen,  who  feared 
the  wind  might  arise  and  they  should  need  the  Hags  to  show 
them  the  direction  and  force  of  it. 

It  was  ten  o'clock  to  the  minute,  and  the  crowd,  which 
was  only  a  trifle  smaller  in  point  of  numbers  than  on  the 
preceding  day,  were  all  grouped  in  front  of  the  hotel, 
crowded  on  the  piazzas,  clustered  on  the  roof,  or  located  in 
whatever  position  offered  the  best  opportunity  to  watch  the 
firing,  and  to  note  the  results  of  it.    They  were  evidently 


246  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

waiting  the  appearance  of  the  Trapper  and  his  companions, 
for  the  buzz  of  conversation  was  constant  but  not  loud, 
while  nearly  every  face  was  turned  toward  the  point  at 
which  the  coming  boat  would  first  show  itself. 

All  at  once  from  the  roof  of  the  hotel  a  voice  sounded 
sharp  and  clear  :  — 

u  There  they  come  !  all  three  of  'em ;  there  they  come  ! n 

And  on  the  instant  the  murmur  of  conversation  ceased, 
and  every  eye  strained  itself  to  catch  the  first  glimpse  of 
the  coming  boat.  An  instant  more  and  it  came  sweeping 
out  from  behind  'the  island  in  full  view,  the  Lad  pulling  a 
stroke  longer  and  quicker  than  was  his  wont,  as  if  those  in 
the  boat  knew  not  the  precise  time  and  feared  they  might 
be  late ;  while  the  Trapper  was  wielding  his  paddle  with  a 
freedom  and  energy  of  motion  that  matched  the  earnest- 
ness of  the  Lad.  Under  the  combined  pressure  of  the  oars 
and  paddle  the  boat  was  being  driven  through  the  water  at 
an  astonishing  rate,  and  came  racing  onward  with  a  veloc- 
ity which  stirred  a  hundred  exclamations  from  the  mouths 
of  the  crowd. 

The  three  professionals  and  their  companions  were  stand- 
ing on  the  outer  angle  of  the  wharf,  watching,  with  eyes 
that  never  winked,  the  approach.  For  a  full  minute  they 
said  not  a  word  and  then  the  gambler,  without  taking  his 
eyes  from  the  boat,  said :  — 

"  There  !  see  the  fool  row !  Where  does  he  keep,  in  his 
slab-sided  body,  the  strength  to  pull  that  stroke  so  easily  ? 
and  where  did  he  get  the  hint  of  it  ?  I  tell  ye,  Bill,"  he  ex- 
claimed, with  the  least  tremor  of  excitement  in  his  voice, 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  247 

I've  seen  the  best  scullers  of  both  countries,  and  I've  never 
seen  a  stroke  I'd  put  up  so  much  money  on  as  that  one  he 
pulled  yesterday,  and  which  you  can  get  the  hint  of  now. 
What  a  joke  'twould  be  if  the  fool  can  shoot,  too !  Bill, 
I'll  £,0  you  two  to  one  he  beats  the  Englishmen  for  the 
purse ! " 

"Bob,"  returned  the  one  he  had  addressed,  "you  are 
crazy.  The  stroke  is  a  winning  stroke,  for  he  proved  it  yes- 
terday ;  but  it  doesn't  stand  to  reason  that  such  a  lathe-like, 
long-legged,  awkward  cuss  can  shoot ;  and  so  you  may  re- 
gard that  little  matter  you  propose,  of  two  to  one,  as  done." 

"  Done  it  is !  "  retorted  the  other,  and  turning  away  on  his 
heel,  carelessly,  he  glanced  at  a  little  blue  covered  book  he 
held  in  his  hand  and  muttered :  "  Well,  I  can't  lose  much 
whoever  wins,  for  I've  hedged  on  them  all."  And  then  he 
laughed  at  —  from  his  point  of  view  —  the  extraordinary 
oddity  of  the  precaution. 

In  the  meantime  our  three  friends  in  the  boat  were  hold- 
ing a  very  important  consultation,  and  one  which  decided, 
as  the  event  proved,  one  of  the  two  grand  results  of  the 
day. 

"  Easy,  Lad,  easy,"  said  the  Trapper,  ye  are  pullin'  as  a 
pigeon  flies  when  he  sees  the  hunter's  smoke  and  hears  the 
whistling  of  the  lead  in  the  air.  Ye  have  got  to  do  yer  best 
to-day,  and  ye'll  need  a  steady  narve  and  a  even  pulse  when 
the  work  begins  ;  for  them  Englishers  have  got  guns  eena- 
most  as  big  as  cannon,  they  say,  and  can  hit  the  size  of  a 
man's  head  furder  than  they  can  see.  Do  ye  raally  conceit, 
Henry,  that  we  had  better  all  three  shoot  for  the  purse  agin 
the  Britishers?" 


248  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  I  certainly  do,"  responded  Herbert.  "  The  more  we  are 
the  better  our  chances ;  for  it  is  in  shooting  as  it  is  in  row- 
ing, accidents  will  happen,  and  who  knows  that  there  may 
not  be  as  many  to-day  as  there  were  yesterday ;  and  where 
would  the  Lad's  rifle  be  now  if  the  two  hadn't  been  made 
three?  Yes,  I  certainly  think  we  should  all  enter ;  for  the 
English  gentlemen  are  noted  shots  and  have  never  been 
beaten,  and  the  messenger  said  last  night  that  the  betting 
was  two  to  one  in  their  favor." 

"  Who  cares !  who  cares  !  "  exclaimed  the  Trapper ;  "  I 
tell  ye,  Henry,  there  isn't  a  Britisher  livin'  can  beat  a  Ameri- 
can shootin',  if  the  weepon  has  a  grooved  barrel;  but  still  I 
like  the  jedgmatical  way  ye  talk,  for  it  shows  ye  are  cau- 
tious, and  caution  is  a  good  thing  afore  a  scrimmage,  and  a 
mighty  mean  thing  in  it.  But  what  can  we  shoot  with, 
boy  ?  for  though  the  pieces  you  and  me  carry  be  as  parfect 
as  man  ever  made,  yit  they  can't  send  lead  the  whole  length 
of  the  Saranac  for  sartin,  and  a  thousand  yards  is  a  bigger 
distance  than  I  ever  sighted  for,  onless  it  be  now  and  then 
in  fun,  or  on  a  ventur.' " 

"  We  will  use  the  Lad's  rifle,  all  three  of  us,"  responded 
Herbert.  "  The  conditions  give  each  contestant  his  choice 
in  respect  to  the  rifle  he  uses ;  and  all  we  have  to  do  is  to 
name  his  gun  as  our  choice,  when  we  enter  for  the  thousand 
yards  prize." 

"  But  do  ye  think  the  Lad's  gun  will  hold  up  to  that  dis- 
tance ?    It  won't  weigh  an  ounce  more  than  ten  pounds." 

"  It  isn't  the  weight  of  a  rifle,  John  Norton,  that  decides 
its  range,  but  the  way  it  is  made,  and  the  quantity  of  pow- 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  249 

der  and  amount  of  lead  it  can  bear.  I  have  a  gun  of  the 
same  make  at  home  that  weighs  only  eight  pounds,  and  I 
have  shot  it  twelve  hundred  yards,  and  put  every  bullet  of 
the  string  into  the  size  of  a  beaver's  hide." 

"  Well,  well,"  exclaimed  the  trapper,  "  I  s'pose  I  must  be- 
lieve ye,  Henry,  but  it  sartinly  seems  wonderful  to  me  that 
lead  can  be  throwed  so  fur  with  any  sartinty.  But  what 
about  the  sightin'  of  the  piece,  boy  ?  —  for  it's  no  better  nor 
a  smooth  bore  if  it  beant  sighted  fust." 

"  I  thought  of  that,"  returned  the  young  man,  "  but  we 
can  manage  it.  You  see,  each  contestant  is  allowed  three 
'  sighting  shots '  and  that  gives  us  nine,  all  told,  and  it  will 
go  hard  with  us  if  we  can't  know  where  we  are  shooting 
before  the  ninth  shot,  especially  as  the  range  is  across  the 
water." 

"  Aye,  aye,  that  it  will.  I  warrant  ye  will  find  the  center 
with  yer  three  bullets  alone.  But  look,  boy,  and  tell  mo 
what  be  the  meanin'  of  them  leetle  flags  fastened  to  the  logs 
yender  ? " 

"  Those  are  what  long  range  shooters  call '  wind  flags,' " 
replied  Herbert,  u  and  they  are  very  useful,  too,  when  the 
wind  blows.  I  shot  a  match  last  fall  when  I  had  to  allow 
five  feet  for  the  '  drift '  of  my  bullet,  and  I  won  the  match 
simply  because  I  studied  the  flags  better  than  the  others." 

"  It's  reasonable,  yis,  it's  sartinly  reasonable,  what  ye  say, 
Henry,"  said  the  Trapper  after  he  had  pondered  the  matter 
for  a  moment ;  "  and  still  as  it  is  now,  ye  are  likely  to  need 
them  afore  the  day  eends,  for  yesterday  was  a  weather- 
breeder  for  sartin,  and  the  wind  will  be  liftin'  by  spells  by 


250  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  by,  or  natur  forgits  her  promises  over  night.  But  if 
the  wind  does  rise,  Henry,  ye  must  intarpret  the  motions  of 
the  (lags  to  me  and  the  Lad,  for  we  are  ignorant  as  ba'.ies 
of  their  language.  Lord-a-massy  ! "  continued  the  old  man, 
"  it  will  be  strange  for  John  Norton  to  shoot  by  the  words 
of  another  and  not  by  what  his  own  eyes  tell  him ! n 

By  this  time  the  boat  had  nearly  reached  the  wharf,  and 
amid  the  cheery  and  multitudinous  greetings  of  the  throng, 
prominent  over  all  being  the  greeting  which  the  ladies  from 
window,  doorway,  and  piazza,  with  fluttering  handkerchief 
and  clapping  of  hands,  gave  the  Old  Trapper  whom  they 
had,  with  that  enthusiasm  tor  which,  in  cases  where  their 
feelings  are  moved  by  strong  preference,  their  sex  are  noted, 
named  "  Our  Champion." 

In  the  midst  of  this  pleasant  recognition  the  Old  Trapper, 
Herbert  and  the  Lad  stepped  ashore,  and  with  their  rifles  in 
their  hands  proceeded  to  the  front  of  the  hotel  where  stood 
the  committee. 

"  Well,"  said  the  Trapper  as  he  and  his  companions  swung 
into  line  in  front  of  the  judges,  "  here  be  me  and  the  boys, 
armed  and  equipped  as  ye  see  for  sarvice.  I  didn't  mean 
to  burn  a  karnal  of  powder  to-day,  but  last  night  yer  mes- 
senger said  that  there  was  to  be  a  puss  of  money  and  a  sil- 
ver horn  shot  for,  and  that  the  women  folks  want  to  see  an 
old  man,  whose  head  has  whitened  in  the  woods,  use  the 
weepon  a  leetle,  which  he's  handled  for  sixty  year.  And 
so  I  said  to  him  that  me  Henry  here  and  the  Lad  would 
come  down  and  jine  in  the  fun,  not  enough  to  spile  the 
sport  of  the  others,  but  jest  enough  to  make  things  lively  a 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MDCH.  251 

leetle — especially  for  the  Britishers,  which  he  told  us  was 
goin'  to  have  everything  their  own  way." 

"  What  do  you  want  to  shoot  for,  John  .Norton,"  said  the 
chairman  of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  "  or  do  you 
wish  to  compete  for  all  the  prizes  ? " 

"Lord  bless  you,  Squire,  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  "we 
wouldn't  spile  the  boys'  sport  for  nothing.  No,  no  !  let  the 
people  shoot  and  git  the  prizes  as  they  can.  Henry  and  me 
wouldn't  hinder  'em;  but  the  Lad,  here,  wants  a  leetle 
change  to  support  his  rifle  with ;  —  for  a  new  rifle  in  the 
woods  is  a  good  deal  like  a  new  wife  in  the  settlements,  it 
takes  a  good  deal  of  money  to  keep  it  goin',  and  me  and 
Henry  sort  of  thought  we'd  jest  jine  in  with  him  to  steady 
his  narves  a  bit  and  make  a  sure  thing  of  it.  So  ye  may 
put  us  three  down  for  that  puss  of  money.  Then,  about 
that  silver  horn,  ye  see  me  and  Henry  both  wants  it  bad, 
and  its  goin'  to  be  nip  and  tuck  atween  us  which  shall  git  it 
when  the  raal  shootin'  begins,  and  I  sartinly  hope  ye  wont 
set  up  any  barn  door  to  shoot  at  like  that  on  the  rock  there, 
but  give  us  something  small  enough  to  try  our  gifts,  that 
the  ladies,  here,  may  see  us  bring  out  the  fine  pints  of  the 
rifle.  So  ye  may  put  us  all  three  down  for  the  puss  and  the 
horn,  and  ye'll  see  shootin'  worth  seein'  afore  the  Englishers 
tote  them  both  off." 

It  was  one  o'clock,  and  eighteen  of  the  twenty  prizes  had 
been  shot  for,  won,  and  distributed.  The  contest  in  several 
cases  had  been  sharp,  the  result  close,  and  not  a  little  ex- 
traordinary shooting  had  been  done.  Indeed,  the  average 
had  been  very  high,  so  high  that  it  won  from  the  Old  Trap 


252  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

per,  who,  with  Herbert  and  the  Lad  had  closely  watched 
the  several  contests,  his  warmest  commendation. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  said  he  as  the  firing  ceased,  "  I  have 
seed  more  good  shootin'  to-day  than  I  ever  seed  in  the  set- 
tlements afore.  Some  of  them  pieces  must  be  nigh  on  to 
parfect,  and  some  of  them  city  boys  need  nothin'  but  edica- 
tion  to  make  them  raally  larned  and  useful  men.  But,  Lord 
bless  me,  what  can  ye  expect  from  a  boy  born  in  the  city 
and  edicated  by  the  school  teachers  of  the  settlements,  who 
know  nothin'  but  letters,  and  figures,  and  parsin'.  Lord-a- 
massy,  Henry,  I've  seed  them  perfessers  that  couldn't  tell  a 
mink  from  a  fisher,  or  the  difference  atween  a  hound's  foot 
and  wolfs  track.  It  sartinly  seems  sinful  for  a  man  to  live 
in  the  world  and  be  so  ignorant  of  its  signs  and  its  ways. 
Ye  are  the  only  one,  Henry,  I  have  ever  met  that  had  the 
knowledge  of  books  and  of  natur',  too,  and  I  should  eena- 
most  doubt "  — 

"  The  contests  for  the  Long  Eange  prize  will  now  begin. 
The  several  contestants  will  take  their  places  and  listen  to 
the  rules  that  govern  the  shooting,"  shouted  the  Chairman 
of  the  Committee  of  Arrangements. 

In  a  moment  the  five  contestants  were  standing  in  front 
of  the  Judges,  and  the  rules  were  read  as  follows :  — 

"  1.  The  shooting  to  be  at  two  distances  —  five  hundred 
and  one  thousand  yards. 

2.  Each  contestant  has  his  choice  of  rifles. 

3.  Shoot  any  way  they  please,  except  with  a  table  rest. 

4.  Order  of  shooting  to  be  decided  by  lot. 

5.  Three  shots  allowed  at  each  range  for  sighting. 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  253 

6.  A  snap  or  miss  fire  to  count  as  a  shot. 

7.  A  string  to  consist  of  ten  shots,  —  measurement  of 
each  string  to  be  from  the  inner  edge  of  each  bullet  hole  to 
the  tack. 

8.  To  miss  the  target  altogether  rules  the  shooter  out  of 
the  match. 

9.  The  prize  to  be  awarded  to  the  man  with  the  lowest 
total  in  the  measurement  of  the  twenty  shots." 

Such  were  the  rules  as  read  by  the  Chairman.  After  read- 
ing them  amid  a  profound  silence,  he  proceeded  to  insert 
several  slips  of  paper  between  the  leaves  of  a  book,  and, 
holding  it  out  to  the  five  men  in  front  of  him,  he  said : 
"  Gentlemen,  you  will  now  draw  lots  for  the  order  in  which 
you  will  shoot." 

The  slips  were  drawn,  and  it  was  found  that  the  two  Eng- 
lishmen had  drawn  numbers  one  and  two ;  the  Lad  had 
drawn  three ;  Herbert,  four  j  the  Old  Trapper,  five. 

At  this  point  the  Judge  announced  that  the  "  sighting " 
shots  would  now  be  made.  The  Englishmen  fired  each  one 
shot,  and  the  white  disk  of  the  marker  showed  them  within 
eight  inches  of  the  tack,  —  seeing  which  the  crowd  sent  up 
a  roar  of  astonishment,  and  the  marksmen  announced  that 
they  didn't  care  to  shoot  the  other  two  shots  allowed  by  the 
rules.  The  noise  had  scarcely  subsided  before  Herbert, 
stretching  himself  at  full  length  upon  the  ground,  and  rest- 
ing the  barrel  of  the  Lad's  rifle  over  a  log  some  eight  inches 
in  diameter,  on  which  he  had  previously  laid  his  hunting 
jacket,  and  resting  with  his  elbows  braced  in  the  form  of  a 
V,  exploded  the  piece.  The  marker's  disk  showed  the  shot 
directly  in  line  two  feet  below  the  tack. 


254  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  Good  enough  ! "  said  the  Trapper,  "  put  in  another  cart- 
ridge, and  hist  the  sight  a  leetle,  Henry.  The  piece  has 
sartinly  got  the  trail,  but  is  runniu'  with  her  nose  a  leetle 
low.    Give  her  a  lift,  boy,  and  try  her  agin." 

While  the  Old  Trapper  had  been  talking,  Herbert  had 
been  elevating  the  sight,  and  the  last  word  was  hardly  out 
of  the  old  man's  mouth  before  the  piece  again  exploded, 
and  the  "tick"  of  the  striking  bullet  came  sharply  back 
through  the  still  air.  The  disk  again  went  up,  and  this  time 
rested  exactly  over  the  center  of  the  target. 

"  By  the  Lord,  Henry ! "  exclaimed  the  old  man,  while  a 
smile  lit  up  his  wrinkled  face,  "  the  gun's  a  good  un,  if  she 
does  load  at  the  wrong  eend.  She  minds  the  sights  as  a 
canoe  does  the  paddle,  and  she's  got  a  voice  like  a  Dutch 
woman  when  she's  angered.  Wipe  her  out,  boy,  wipe  her 
out ;  for  a  smutty  bar'l  bothers  the  bullet,  and  we'll  show 
the  Englishers  that  a  gun  in  the  hands  of  a  woodsman  can 
throw  lead  as  straight  as  a  cannon." 

This  was  said  in  reference  to  the  strangers'  rifles,  that 
were  of  heavy  English  make,  weighing  sixteen  or  eighteen 
pounds. 

"What  rifle  are  you  to  shoot,  John  Norton?"  said  the 
Judge. 

"Well,  squire,"  said  the  Trapper,  "ye  see,  although  the 
pieces  that  Henry  and  me  use  are  parfect  to  a  certain  dis- 
tance, yit  they  wasn't  made  to  shoot  round  the  world,  and 
yer  ranges  hero  are  beyend  the  power  of  their  bar'ls  to 
cover  j  and  as  ye  want  to  see  the  Lad's  rifle  here  put  into 
sarvice,  we  conceited  we'd  all  three  use  her,  and  see  if  she 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  255 

was  worth  takiu'  into  the  woods.  And  as  Henry,  here 
seems  to  have  got  the  p'intin'  of  the  piece  about  right,  and 
there  isn't  any  time  to  spare,  ye  may  begin  to  call  off  as 
soon  as  ye  please,  and  let  the  talkin'  begin.  I  feel  as  if  I'd 
like  to  git  my  eye  into  the  sights  pretty  soon,  myself." 

"  The  shooting  for  the  five  hundred  yards  range  will  now 
begin,"  said  the  Judge.  "  All  the  spectators  are  requested 
not  to  indulge  in  loud  talking  lest  they  disturb  the  marks- 
men. I  shall  call  each  in  his  order,  and  no  one  will  shoot 
until  I  call  his  number.    Number  One  ! " 

One  of  the  Englishmen,  a  noble  looking  man  of  about 
forty,  deliberately  laid  himself  down  on  his  back,  rested  the 
muzzle  of  his  rifle  between  his  feet,  that  were  crossed, 
passed  his  left  arm  under  his  head,  grasped  the  stock  of  his 
rifle  with  his  hand,  and  taking  a  deliberate  sight  fired.  His 
companion,  when  called,  took  the  same  position,  and  the 
marker's  disk  showed  that  both  bullets  had  been  lodged 
within  the  eight-inch  diameter  ring  which  surrounded  the 
tack.  The  exhibition  of  skill  was  too  fine  to  be  received  in 
silence,  and  the  crowd  broke  into  a  cheer  at  the  result. 

"  The  Englishers  call  that  shootin',  do  they  ? "  said  the 
Trapper  in  a  low  voice.  "  Yer  way  of  shootin',  Henry,  is 
bad  enough,  for  sartin ;  although  I  allow  there  is  reason  in 
yer  elbow-rest,  as  ye  call  it;  but  I  never  expected  to  see  a 
man  shoot  in  that  kinked-up  fashion.  They  look  more  like 
a  turtle  lyin'  on  its  back  than  human  bein's.    Why  —  " 

"  Number  Three  ! "  called  the  Judge. 

Amid  a  silence  as  profound  as  if  each  spectator  had  been 
suddenly  turned  to  stone,  the  Lad  stretched  himself  beside 


256  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

Herbert  on  the  grass,  and  imitating  his  position,  set  his  eye 
to  the  sights.  One  instant,  and  then  the  explosion  came. 
The  next  and  the  marker's  disk  settled  to  the  target  within 
four  inches  of  the  tack.  The  yell  that  succeeded  was  simply 
tremendous. 

"  Well  done,  Lad !  "  shouted  the  Trapper,  as  he  brought 
his  hand  with  a  mighty  slap  against  his  thigh,  while  his 
mouth  opened  to  its  widest  stretch.  "  Ye'll  give  them  Brit- 
ishers the  cramp  in  the  small  of  their  backs,  if  ye  can  stick 
'em  in  in  that  style.  Now,  Henry,  hist  her  nose  a  leetle 
and  show  'em  the  fine  pints  of  the  piece." 

"  Number  Four ! "  called  the  Judge,  as  soon  as  his  voice 
could  be  heard.  Herbert  had  already  his  eye  at  the  sight 
when  the  word  was  given,  and  before  the  sound  of  the 
caller's  voice  had  died  away,  the  gun  exploded.  Again  the 
disk  settled  to  the  target,  showing  that  the  bullet  had 
divided  the  distance  between  the  hole  made  by  the  Lad's 
ball  and  the  tack. 

It  was  a  full  minute  before  the  Judge  could  make  his 
voice  heard,  for  the  tumult  of  a  thousand  open  mouths  was 
in  the  air,  and  the  noise  was  overwhelming.  Amid  the  up- 
roar the  Old  Trapper's  voice  was  the  loudest,  for  he  was 
wise  enough  to  know  that  the  gun  was  working  well  and 
could  be  relied  on,  and  that  his  two  companions  had  the 
match  in  their  hands.  Indeed,  so  strongly  was  this  fact 
impressed  on  his  mind  that  he  bent  down  to  Herbert,  who 
was  still  lying  on  the  grass,  and  said  :  — 

"  I  tell  ye,  boy,  ye've  got  'em.  The  bar'l  is  a  true  one 
and  ye  and  the  Lad  don't  need  my  help.  I  aint  goin'  to 
shoot." 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  257 

"  John  Norton/'  said  Herbert,  "  you  talk  nonsense.  The 
Lad  isn't  certain,  for  he  never  shot  a  match  in  his  life,  and 
this  is  the  short  range.  At  the  long  range  the  gun  may  not 
work  so  well,  and  some  accident  may  happen.  Remember 
your  own  fame.  A  thousand  people  are  looking  to  see  you 
prove  your  skill.  Besides,  I  want  to  see  you  shoot,  myself. 
Above  all,  I  want  these  Englishmen  to  see  what  an  Ameri- 
can gun  can  do." 

"Well,  well,  Henry,"  interrupted  the  Trapper,  "ye  shall 
have  yer  way.  Clean  the  piece  and  shove  in  yer  cartridge. 
I  never  thought  John  Norton  would  shoot  a  rifle  that  was 
loaded  at  the  breech  pin." 

"  Number  Five ! "  shouted  the  caller.  "  Silence.  John 
Norton  is  to  shoot." 

The  old  man  took  the  piece,  and  turning  to  the  caller,  he 
said :  — 

"  Ye  see,  squire,  I've  never  handled  the  piece,  and  if  ye 
have  no  objection  I  would  like  to  run  my  eye  through  the 
sights,  for  new  sights  to  the  eye  are  a  good  deal  like  a  new 
knife  in  the  mouth,  ye-  have  to  use  it  awhile  afore  ye  git 
used  to  it." 

"  No  objection ;  you  can  look  through  the  sights  as  long 
as  you  wish." 

The  old  man  lifted  the  rifle  to  his  cheek  and  lowered  it 
again.    This  he  did  several  times;  at  last  he  said :  — 

"  I  can't  say,  squire,  that  the  piece  balances  jest  right, 
for  it's  a  leetle  too  heavy  at  the  breech  and  too  straight  in 
the  stock,  and  the  bar'l  is  colored  a  leetle  too  high,  and  it 
sartinly  loads  at  the  wrong  eend ;  but  the  sights  be  right 


258  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  the  air  is  clean  as  the  Lord  ever  makes  it.  A  man 
ought  to  do  eenamost  anything  with  a  true  har'l,  to-day. 
Now  a  hundred  rods  is  a  good  range,  for  sartin,  but  the 
board  yender  is  well  placed,  and  the  white  shows  as  clear 
as  a  white  gull  in  the  air.  Now  Henry  says  the  gun  shoots 
full  three  inches  under,  and  advises  me  to  hold  up,  and  the 
boy's  jedgment  is  onusually  good  in  sech  things.  And  I 
shall  be  governed  by  him  in  the  matter,  and  if  he  is  right 
the  lead  ought  to  be  found  pretty  near  the  tack,  if  the  pow- 
der burns  quick,  and  nothin'  onnateral  happens ;  but  the 
credit  of  the  shot  will  half  belong  to  Henry,  if  his  advice 
is  correct.  Now,  ye  may  git  yer  eyes  onto  the  board  as 
soon  as  ye  please  or  the  bullet  will  git  there  ahead  of  ye." 

In  spite  of  the  Trapper's  advice  not  an  eye  in  all  the 
throng  turned  toward  the  target,  but  remained  steadfastly 
fixed  on  the  marksman.  Nothing  could  be  finer  than  the 
old  man's  appearance  as  he  straightened  his  form  to  its  full 
height,  advanced  his  left  foot  and  lifted  the  barrel  into  the 
air.  Slowly  and  easily  it  settled  down  into  the  broad  hand 
extended  to  receive  it,  stood  fixed  for  an  instant,  as  if  it 
was  a  part  of  the  atmosphere  itself,  then  burst  out  its  ex- 
plosion. Before  an  eye  in  all  the  crowd  had  turned  to  the 
target,  the  gun,  with  its  muzzle  still  smoking,  lay  resting  in 
the  hollow  of  the  old  man's  arm,  while  his  hand,  from  long 
habit,  was  involuntarily  feeling  for  the  powder-horn  to  re- 
charge the  barrel. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  SHOOTING  MATCH. 

"On  thee  the  fortunes  of  our  house  depend."  —  Virgil. 

"DUT  recollecting  themselves  in  an  instant  the  spectators, 
as  with  one  movement,  turned  their  gaze  at  the  target. 
The  marker  stood  in  front  of  it  for  a  moment  and  then  he 
waved  the  disk  upward  and  downward,  ending  with  a  flour- 
ish into  the  air  over  his  head. 

"  John  Norton ! "  exclaimed  the  Judge,  "  you  have  missed 
the  target  entirely,  and  I  regret  to  say  you  are  ruled  out 
from  farther  shooting." 

"  Missed  the  target ! "  said  the  old  man,  while  the  silence 
of  the  crowd  was  absolutely  oppressive,  and  every  word 
could  be  heard  by  the  listeners.  "  Missed  the  target ! "  re- 
peated the  Trapper,  "  that  would  be  a  good  'un,  and  some- 
thing the  Saranacs  wouldn't  forgit  in  a  day.  No,  no,  jedge ; 
its  a  big  distance  I'll  allow,  but  the  air  is  clear,  the  sights 
showed  plain,  the  powder  burnt  quick ;  and  the  piece,  con- 
siderin'  it  loads  at  the  wrong  eend,  is  a  good  'un.  Henry 
told  me  to  allow  three  inches,  and  if  the  boy  was.  right,  as 
he  13  likely  to  be  in  sech  a  matter,  yer  marker  there  oughter 
find  the  lead  in  the  black  around  the  tack." 

At  that  instant  a  shout  came  booming  over  the  water. 
For  a  moment  the  marker  was  seen  swinging  his  hat  over 


260  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

his  head  and  then  the  white  disk  was  placed  squarely  ovet 
the  center  of  the  target. 

The  roar  that  the  crowd  sent  upward  into  the  air  was 
positively  deafening.  It  lifted  the  atmosphere  like  an  ex- 
plosion, and  swelled  as  it  rose  until  the  upper  air  was  filled 
with  the  enlarging  sound.  Again  and  again  did  the  crowd 
explode.  Cheer  upon  cheer  chased  each  other  across  the 
lake,  and  rolled  their  serial  waves  against  the  distant  hills. 
Amid  the  tumult  the  Old  Trapper,  whose  hand  Herbert  had 
grasped,  and  was  shaking  with  unconscious  vigor  and  ener- 
gy, exclaimed :  — 

"  Lord !  Henry,  did  the  folks  think  that  a  man  who  has 
used  the  weepon  all  his  life,  till  his  head  is  whitenin',  could 
miss  a  board  as  big  as  a  door  on  a  day  like  this  V  I  tell  ye, 
boy,  if  the  wind  wont  lift,  and  the  piece  works  well,  I'll 
drive  every  bullet  of  the  ten  inside  the  size  of  a  sasser. 
Lord-a-massy,  Henry,  what  a  grip  ye  have !  The  Lad  and 
me  has  seen  ye  when  yer  fingers  hadn't  pinch  enough  in 
them  to  break  an  egg-shell."  And  the  Old  Man  laughed 
heartily  at  his  own  thought. 

Presently  the  crowd  regained  their  composure,  and  the 
shooting  proceeded  with  regularity  and  precision.  In  less 
than  an  hour  the  string  was  shot,  the  judge  had  measured 
the  distance  of  each  of  the  marksmen's  bullets  from  the 
tack,  and  announced  that  he  would  declare  the  score :  — 

"  Ladies  and  gentlemen,"  said  he,  "  the  score  of  the  shoot- 
ing at  five  hundred  yards  stands  as  follows  :  Total  distance 
of  the  ten  shots  from  the  tack  for  Number  One,  is  60  inches; 
Number  Two,  is  58^  inches;  Number  Three,  is  55  inches; 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  2G.1 

Number  Four,  is  47  inches ;  Number  Five,  is  47  J  inches. 
Mr.  Herbert  leads  the  score  at  the  five  hundred  yards  range, 
beating  Number  One,  13  inches ;  Number  Two,  11£  inches; 
Number  Three,  8  inches;  Number  Five,  £  inch."  And  then 
he  added  :  "  We  will  now  adjourn  the  shooting  for  twenty 
minutes,  at  the  end  of  which  time  the  sbooting  at  one  thou- 
sand yards  will  begin." 

During  the  intermission  speculation  raged,  and  the  dis- 
cussion as  to  the  chances  of  the  several  contestants  was 
warm.  All  agreed  that  the  Trapper's  shooting  —  firing 
as  he  had  "  off  hand" —  was  never  equalled.  Such  stead- 
iness of  nerve  all  admitted  was  never  seen  before,  and  that 
his  string  would  stand  forever  unrivalled.  But  still,  it  was 
claimed  that  no  human  being  could  shoot  one  thousand 
yards  "  off  hand  "  and  stand  any  chance  beside  men  accus- 
tomed to  the  distance,  and  shooting  from  a  rest.  On  the 
other  hand  the  partisans  of  the  Trapper  asserted  that  so 
clear  was  his  eye,  so  steady  his  nerves,  and  so  perfect  his 
control  of  the  piece,  that  he  could  shoot,  and  would  shoot 
at  the  longer  as  well  as  he  had  at  the  shorter  distance ; 
and  they  backed  him  at  any  odds  against  everybody  but 
Herbert. 

In  respect  to  Herbert,  the  backers  of  the  Trapper  ad- 
mitted that  he  might  win ;  indeed,  they  went  so  far  as  to 
own  that  he  probably  would.  Like  the  Trapper,  he  had 
shot  with  great  steadiness;  his  bullets  being  "  bunched"  a 
little  under,  as  the  Trapper's  were  a  little  over,  the  center ; 
and  the  manner  in  which  the  Old  Man  treated  him,  as  truly 
as  the  words  of  praise  he  had  spoken  in  his  behalf,  had 


262  ADIRONDACK   TALE3. 

made  a  profound  impression  on  the  throng.  So  that  as  be 
tween  the  two  no  bets  were  made,  all  admitting  that  it  was, 
as  the  Trapper  said  it  would  be,  "  nip  and  tuck "  between 
them. 

The  Lad  rose  in  popular  favor,  with  every  shot  he  made. 
Indeed,  his  shooting  had  improved  from  the  start,  and  his 
last  three  bullets  had  been  driven  within  three  inches  of 
the  tack  and  so  close  together  that  their  edges  touched. 
This  had  not  escaped  the  notice  of  our  "  silent"  friend,  who 
had  watched  the  Lad  as  the  contest  proceeded  and  the  ex- 
citement grew,  and  noticed  that  whether  the  crowd  was 
noisy  or  still  the  look  of  placid  simplicity  never  left  his  face, 
and  when  he  sighted  the  last  shot,  not  a  muscle  in  his  face 
even  tightened,  nor  the  least  particle  of  stiffness  came  to 
the  long,  awkward  finger  as  it  rested  on  the  delicate  trig- 
ger. Profoundly  impressed  by  these  facts  he  was  "  laying 
heavy  on  the  fool,"  as  he  expressed  it. 

Still,  the  Englishmen  had  strong  backing.  They  freely 
admitted  that  the  American  gun  shot  "  beyond  all  prece- 
dent," but  they  as  stoutly  held  that  "no  breech  loading 
arm,  and  especially  of  so  light  a  character,  could  possibly 
compete  at  a  thousand  yards  with  such  guns  as  they  were 
firing."  And  this  judgment  was  endorsed  by  many  among 
the  spectators.  Indeed,  the  majority,  for  the  reason  above 
mentioned,  still  stood  with  the  strangers  and  confidently 
asserted  that  "  they  would  surely  and  easily  win  at  the  thou- 
sand yard  range." 

While  the  crowd  were  thus  discussing  the  chances  of  the 
several  contestants,  Nature  was  busy  in  introducing  new 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  263 

and  potential  features  into  the  problem.  The  sky  that  had 
been  cloudless  suddenly  darkened,  and  great  black  patches 
began  to  float  through  the  firmament.  The  winds  were 
unloosed  and  gusts  began  to  spin  themselves  in  eddying 
courses  across  the  level  lake.  The  flags  on  the  staffs,  that 
had  hung  all  the  morning  pendent,  or  clung  in  coils  around 
the  slender  sticks,  began  to  flap  and  flutter,  one  instant 
streaming  free,  the  next  sinking  again  into  utter  repose. 
What  made  it  still  worse  the  winds  were  changeful.  One 
instant  a  breeze  would  blow  straight  up  the  lake,  the  next 
a  gust  would  spin  squarely  athwart  the  range.  The  Eng- 
lishmen hailed  this  with  unconcealed  delight,  thinking  that 
their  long  experience  on  windy  ranges  would  tell  strongly 
in  their  favor.  Even  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he  watched  the 
rising  wind,  got  uneasy,  and  calling  his  two  companions  to 
him  said :  — 

"  Now,  Henry,  ye  see  the  wind  is  risin'  as  I  felt  sartin  it 
would  afore  long,  and  the  Englishes  are  tickled,  for  they 
think  they  can  beat  us,  as  they  sartinly  can  me  and  the  Lad, 
in  calculatin'  the  force  of  the  squalls.  What  say  ye,  Henry, 
can  ye  match  'em  in  watchin'  the  flags  ? " 

"You  needn't  worry,  John  Norton,"  replied  Herbert,  "I've 
had  as  much  experience  with  flags  and  windy  ranges  as 
they  have,  and  I  doubt  if  they  can  beat  me  at  the  business. 
But  I  warn  you  both  to  remember  that  the  wind  exercises  a 
great  influence  on  the  flight  of  a  bullet  at  a  distance  of  one 
thousand  yards — greater  than  one  would  suppose  unless  he 
has  had  experience  of  it,  and  that  you  must  shoot  when  and 
where  I  tell  you,  no  matter  how  strange  the  direction  may 


264  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

seem  to  you.  Of  course  it's  a  little  awkward,  but  if  you 
will  obey  ine  I  think  we  cau  beat  them  at  their  own  game, 
wind  or  no  wind." 

"  Don't  ye  fear  about  that,  Henry,"  responded  the  Trap- 
per, "  I'll  shoot  where  ye  say  if  ye  tell  me  to  shoot  into  one 
of  the  winders  of  the  tavern  here.  So  ye  jest  give  us  the 
word  and  the  lead  shall  go  where  ye  say,  if  I  have  to  send 
the  bullet  over  to  the  Upper  Saranac." 

"  The>  shooting  at  the  Long  Range  will  now  begin,"  shouted 
the  Judge.  "  Each  man  is  allowed  three  sighting  shots  and 
they  can  shoot  them  when  they  please,  taking  advantage  of 
the  lulls  between  the  gusts  of  the  wind." 

The  marksmen  were  already  in  their  places,  and  in  a  few 
moments  the  Englishmen  had  made  their  trial,  and  with 
success.  Herbert  watched  his  chance  and  shot  each  of  his 
three  shots  when  the  flags  hung  unmoved  on  their  staffs. 
His  last  two  bullets  had  struck  within  two  inches  of  each 
other,  eight  inches  under  the  center.  He  was  delighted  at 
his  good  luck,  for  he  kuew  that  the  least  trifle  of  elevation 
would  give  the  piece  the  center  range,  and  he  announced  to 
the  Judge  that  the  Trapper,  the  Lad  and  himself  were  ready. 

In  a  few  moments  the  firing  began.  Number  One  put  his 
bullet  within  ten  inches  of  the  tack,  directly  to  the  right, 
and  was  cheered.  Number  Two  nearly  duplicated  the  shot 
only  his  bullet  "  drifted  "  to  the  left.  He,  too,  was  cheered. 
Iudeed,  the  crowd  was  in  excellent  humor  and  ready  to  be 
pleased  with  anything.  Besides,  the  range  was  so  much 
beyond  the  capacity  of  ordinary  guns  that  even  to  hit  the 
target  seemed  to  most  of  the  spectators  a  wonderful  ex- 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  265 

ploit,  anc*  to  plant  a  bullet  within  a  foot  of  the  tack  was 
enough  to  set  them  yelling.  It  was  now  the  Lad's  turn, 
and  the  wind  was  blowing  up  the  lake  with  decided  vio- 
lence. 

"  Hold  on,  Lad  j  hold  on/'  said  the  Trapper.  "  Wait  till 
Henry  gives  ye  the  word  and  then  fire  where  he  tells  ye,  if 
yer  bullet  has  to  go  round  the  Three  Sisters  to  git  at  the 
target.  This  shootin'  by  flags  and  orders,  and  with  a  gun 
that  loads  at  the  wrong  eend,  is  squaw's  work  anyhow; 
but  the  Englishers  must  be  beaten  if  we  have  to  shoot  in 
platoons — " 

"Keady,  Lad!"  said  Herbert,  sharply.'  "Aim  two  feet 
under  —  in  direct  line,  — fire." 

The  astonishment  of  the  crowd  was  intense,  and  their 
consequent  noise  deafening,  when  the  marker's  disk  showed 
the  Lad's  bullet  but  five  inches  from  the  tack — directly  be- 
!ow  it. 

The  Old  Trapper  said  not  a  word.  Indeed,  he  had  no  op- 
portunity ;  for  Herbert  had  instantly  inserted  another  car- 
tridge, and  before  the  marker  had  fairly  sunk  from  sight, 
his  piece  exploded.  Quick  as  a  flash  the  marker  lifted  his 
disk  and  set  it  to  the  target  in  the  identical  spot  he  had  laid 
it  for  the  Lad's  shot.  Indeed  the  two  shots  —  by  one  of 
those  strange  occurrences  which  occasionally  happen  in 
shooting  —  had  penetrated  the  target  so  near  the  same 
point  that  their  edges  actually  cut  into  each  other. 

The  exhibition  of  skill  on  the  part  of  the  inarksmen,  and 
of  the  extraordinary  accuracy  of  the  rifle  itself,  and  the  in- 
telligence which  Herbert  brought  to  watching   the  flags, 


266  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

made  a  profound  impression  on  the  throng.  The  English 
men  themselves  came  over,  and  looked  curiously  at  the 
gun  which  had  proved  itself  able  to  project  its  bullets  with 
such  force  and  precision.  It  was  several  minutes  before 
anything  like  order  prevailed,  and  then  the  judges  called 
out:  — 

"  Number  Five  !  " 

"Now,  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he  lifted  the 
piece,  "  ye  give  me  the  true  p'ints  of  the  case,  as  the  law- 
yers say,  or  I  wouldn't  give  a  cent  for  the  vardict.  It's  a 
big  distance,  for  sartin,"  continued  he,  as  he  ranged  his  eyes 
over  the  water  to*  where  the  target  stood.  "  Yis,  it's  a  big 
distance,  and  I  marvel  that  so  small  a  gun  can  bear  the 
chargin'  she  does.  Didn't  ye  say,  boy,  she  barnt  a  hundred 
grains,  and  fine  karneled  at  that  ?  A  hundred  grains !  Why, 
Henry,  I've  toted  a  piece  nigh  on  to  twice  the  heft  of  this, 
that  didn't  chamber  a  thimbleful,  and  carried  a  bullet  no 
bigger  than  a  pea.  Yis,  yis,  I  begin  to  see  the  reason  of  it. 
A  hundred  grains !  why  it's  enough  to  carry  a  bullet  half 
way  to  Tophet,  if  the  muzzle  of  the  piece  had  the  right  lift 
to  it.  Aye,  aye,  Henry,  I  understand.  Don't  be  oneasy, 
boy;  when  ye  give  the  word,  ye'll  find  me  ready;  but  when 
a  man  has  nothing  else  to  do  it  doesn't  hurt  him  any  to  talk 
a  leetle,  as  I  conceit,  especially  if  he  talks  to  himself  and 
in  a  jedicious  manner  —  " 

"  Beady  ! "  said  Herbert.  "  Level  with  the  tack,  —  three 
feet  to  the  right,  — fire !  " 

The  piece  exploded  with  the  word.  Indeed,  the  explo- 
sion actually  drowned  the  voice  that  pronounced  it.    It  was 


THE   MAN  THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH. 


26T 


all  done  so  quickly  that  it  seemed  incredible  that  the  Trap- 
per could  have  sighted. 

"  Aye,  aye,  Henry,"  said  the  old  man  laughing,  as  Herbert 
glanced  interrogatively  up  at  him ;  "  level  it  was,  and  three 
feet  to  the  right,  jest  as  ye  told  me  to  do  it.  The  piece  was 
held  as  ye  said  it  should  be,  though  where  the  bullet  has 
gone  the  Lord  only  knows.  For  the  range  ye  gave  sartinly 
brought  the  sights  full  three  inches  off  the  board,  and  I  had 
all  of  West  Bay  to  sight  at." 

What  more  the  Old  Trapper  would  have  said,  had  he  not 
been  interrupted,  will  uever  be  known ;  for  he  was  inter- 
rupted in  the  midst  of  his  sentence  by  a-  yell  so  wild  and 
stroug  that  it  fairly  startled  him.  His  eye  glanced  quick  as 
a  lightning  flash  toward  the  target,  and  beheld,  as  he  did 
so,  a  perfect  explanation  of  the  enthusiasm  of  the  crowd. 
The  bullet,  driven  with  terrible  velocity  through  the  air,  had 
traversed  its  thousand  yards  of  flight,  and,  so  nicely  had 
Herbert  calculated  the  influence  of  the  wind  and  the  result- 
ant drift,  and  so  exactly  had  the  Trapper  obeyed  him  in  his 
aim,  that  it  had  penetrated  the  target  almost  at  its  central 
point;  for  the  disk  of  the  marker  lay  directly  over  the  tack. 

It  is  but  truth  to  say  that  of  all  those  in  the  crowd,  not 
one  was  more  astonished  than  the  Old  Trapper  himself. 
The  idea  that  so  small  a  barrel  should  be  able  to  project  its 
bullet  the  distance  of  such  a  range  and  enter  it  so  accu- 
rately at  the  point  aimed  at,  was  a  revelation  to  the  old 
rifleman's  mind.  He  looked  at  the  piece,  as  it  lay  balanced 
in  his  mighty  hand,  and  then  measured  with  observant  eye 
the  length  of  the  range,  with  features  whose  expression  re- 
vealed the  thought  that  was  within. 


268  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

"Pd  never  believed  it,  Henry.  No,  boy,  I'd  never  be- 
lieved it,  ouless  my  own  eyes  had  seed  it  done.  I'd  never 
believed  that  a  bar'l  not  twice  as  big  as  a  soldier's  ramrod, 
and  but  a  leetle  heavier,  could  have  throwed  an  ounce  of 
lead  across  that  distance.  They  say  strange  things  have 
been  fouud  out,  and  many  inventions  diskivered  in  the  set- 
tlements sence  I  fust  struck  the  trail.  But  among  them  all, 
there  can't  be  a  greater,  no,  there  can't  be  a  greater,  than 
this  leetle  gun  that  has  set  a  man,  who  has  used  the  rifle 
for  sixty  year,  and  thought  he  knowed  all  the  strong  p'ints 
of  the  weepon,  to  marvelin'.  No,  I'd  never  believed  it  if  I 
hadn't  seed  it  with  my  own  eyes." 

In  this  manner  the  match  proceeded  up  to  the  sixth  shot. 
The  shooting  had  continued  in  favor  of  the  Old  Trapper  and 
his  companious  as  opposed  to  the  Englishmen.  The  Ameri- 
can gun  was  proving  its  superiority  over  the  English  ones 
with  each  successive  discharge.  But  as  to  the  three  that 
shot  it  the  closest  observer  was  in  doubt  as  to  which  was 
leading  his  companions.  The  shooting  of  the  three  as  di- 
rected by  Herbert  had  been  remarkably  even ;  for  so  skilled 
was  he  in  watching  the  flags,  so  exact  was  his  judgment, 
and  so  promptly  did  his  companions  respond  to  his  direc- 
tions, that  their  shooting  had  been  distinguished  by  all  the 
accuracy  that  would  have  attended  their  practice  on  a  par- 
fectly  calm  day.  The  Englishmen  had  shot  well,  but  they 
had  been  unable  to  gain  any  advantage  over  the  Americaus 
by  reason  of  any  superior  knowledge  touching  the  atmos- 
pheric influences  on  the  flight  of  their  projectiles,  while  in 
point  of  skill  and  capacity  of  their  guns  they  were  evidently 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  269 

inferior  to  their  rivals.  The  Old  Trapper,  as  the  shooting 
proceeded,  was  in  his  element,  and  appeared  to  the  best 
possible  advantage.  Noble  and  generous  as  his  nature  was, 
there  was  nevertheless  in  it  that  quality  of  ambition  which 
gives  to  rivalry  the  keenish  relish,  and  he  enjoyed  with  in- 
tense delight  the  idea  that  he  was  "  beatin'  them  English- 
ers."  Indeed,  he  was  full  of  jokes  and  comments  as  the 
match  proceeded,  and  shot  after  shot  revealed  the  accuracy 
of  the  gun  he  was  using,  and  the  fine  discrimination  with 
which  Herbert  was  directing  the  bullets. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  he  exclaimed,  as  the  marker's  disk 
revealed  the  fact  that  his  sixth  ball  had  struck  within  four 
inches  of  the  tack,  "  I  tell  ye,  Henry,  ye  are  sartinly  gifted 
in  readin'  them  flags,  and  yer  jedgment  in  the  matter  of 
squalls  is  as  good  as  a  Dutch  woman's  with  a  dozen  children. 
I  eenamost  think  ye  have  got  an  understandin'  with  the 
dark  of  the  weather  techin'  the  way  he  is  to  blow.  Now, 
ye  told  me  to  hold  a  foot  over  the  target,  and  I  obeyed  ye 
like  a  Hessian  privit,  that  knows  nothin'  but  the  orders  he 
gits  from  his  sargeant,  but  I  was  mortally  sartin  that  that 
bullet  wouldn't  fetch  up  this  side  of  Upper  Saranac ;  and 
there  it  is,  as  the  boy  yender  says,  stickin'  close  to  the  tack. 
I  say,  jedge,"  exclaimed  the  old  man,  as  he  turned  to  the 
gentleman  who  had  charge  of  the  match,  "  suppose  ye  send 
down  to  the  barn-door  yender,  and  have  a  leetle  measurin' 
made  that  we  may  have  some  idee  of  how  the  thing  is  git- 
tin'  along.  It  aint  necessary,  ye  see,  to  strain  the  gun,  be- 
cause enough  is  enough.  And  as  we  can't  all  three  beat, 
we  would  like  to  know  how  the  thing  stands,  or  we  may 


270  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

all  come  out  alike ;  and  ye  can  no  more  divide  a  puss  of 
money  than  ye  can  a  beaver's  hide.  While  it  is  fust  rate 
for  one,  it  won't  split  up  wuth  a  cent  for  three.  So  I  sar- 
tinly  advise  that  ye  let  us  know  where  we  be,  or  we  may 
have  to  shoot  this  whole  thing  over  again." 

This  request  met  with  universal  approbation;  and  in  a 
few  moments  the  several  strings  had  been  measured,  and 
the  scores  put  into  the  hand  of  the  judge,  who  announced 
the  following  results  :  — 

"  Number  One,  six  shots,  total,  58  inches ;  Number  Two, 
64  inches;  Number  Three,  50  inches;  Number  Four,  48£ 
inches ;  Number  Five,  49  inches. 

"  Ye  see,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper,  laughing,  "  the  Lad 
has  got  the  raal  gift  in  him,  and  he  is  arter  us  in  'arnest.  I 
conceit  we  shall  beat  him  if  he  don't  grow  any  in  the  next 
four  shots ;  but  if  he  gets  a  leetle  more  length  he'll  head  us, 
sartin  as  fate.  It  would  be  the  queerest  thing  I  ever  seed 
if  we  three  should  go  out  abreast.  It  would  take  consid- 
erable figurin'  —  yis,  it  would  sartinly  take  a  good  deal 
countin'  of  fingers  to  divide  that  puss  out  there,  so  that  all 
of  us  could  have  as  much  as  we  want.  We  shall  have  to 
squint  a  leetle  closer,  boy,  or  the  Lad  will  beat  us  at  our 
own  game. 

"  I  hope  he  will,"  said  Herbert,  "  for  I  never  saw  a  man 
of  his  age  and  inexperience  at  long-range  shooting  take  to 
the  work  so  handily.  But  there  .are  four  more  shots  to 
come,  and  while  the  Englishmen  are  a  good  ways  behind 
us,  still  it  is  any  one's  match  as  yet.  They  have  shot  well, 
and  the  least  mistake  on  our  part  in  estimating  the  force  of 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  271 

the  wind,  or  the  least  unsteadiness  in  our  aim,  may  give 
them  the  prize." 

"  The  shooting  will  begin,"  called  the  judge,  —  "Number 
One ! " 

The  rifle  of  Number  One  cracked  at  the  word,  and  the 
marker's  disk  showed  it  a  center  shot. 

"  "Well,"  said  the  Trapper,  grimly,  "  he's  found  the  mouth 
of  the  tunnel  at  last,  anyway." 

"  Yes,"  replied  Herbert,  "  and  he  may  find  it  again." 

"Number  Two ! "  cried  the  judge. 

And  the  bullet  followed  so  closely  the  flight  of  his  com- 
panion's that  the  white  disk  settled  again  squarely  over  the 
center. 

"  Good  enough,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  Those  two  augers 
fit  the  same  hole." 

"  Number  Three  !  "  shouted  the  judge. 

"Wait"  said  Herbert  to  the  Lad.  "A  foot  to  the  left} 
level  with  the  tack.    Fire  ! " 

The  lad  obeyed  to  the  letter.  The  result  justified  the 
judgment  of  Herbert.  Again  the  disk  settled  over  the  cen- 
ter. 

"  There'll  be  a  winder  through  that  barn-door,"  said  the 
Trapper,  "  afore  we're  through.  Now  Henry,  make  a  leetle 
more  room  for  the  daylight  atween  the  sash." 

"  Number  Four ! "  called  the  judge,  somewhat  excitedly. 

For  a  moment  Herbert  waited.  The  flaw  passed  and  the 
long  line  of  crimson  flags  hung  pendent  on  their  staffs. 
The  crowd  stood  breathless.  The  Old  Trapper  bent  forward 
with  his  eyes  on  the  distant  target  as  if  with  unassisted 


272  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

vision  he  would  fain  mark  the  entrance  of  the  bullet.  And 
then,  the  sharp,  clear  click  of  the  hammer  as  it  struck  the 
rim  of  the  cartridge,  sounded  on  the  air. 

The  gun  had  failed  to  explode  ! 

The  excitement  was  so  intense  that  a  cry  that  sounded 
like  a  groan  rose  from  the  throng. 

11  Death  and  jedgment  ! "  said  the  Trapper.  It  was  all 
he  said,  but  into  the  expression  he  had  put  the  emphasis  of 
such  disgust  that  the  crowd  from  a  sudden  revulsion  of  feel- 
ing laughed  and  roared. 

"  There,  I  am  out  of  the  match,"  said  Herbert  calmly,  as 
he  rose  to  his  feet  and  extended  the  rifle  to  the  Trapper. 
"  I  trust  that  you  and  the  Lad  will  have  better  luck,  but 
shooting  is  full  of  chances,  and  you  never  know  until  the 
score  is  counted  who  has  won." 

"  Give  me  the  bearin'  of  the  wind,  Henry,"  said  the  old 
man  grimly.  "  This  is  what  comes  of  usin'  a  piece  that 
loads  at  the  wrong  eend.  I  sartinly  expect  the  breech  pin 
will  blow  out  this  lick.    Now,  an  honest  gun  —  " 

"Keady,"  said  Herbert.  "Don't  fool  now,  John  Norton. 
Steady  —  cover  the  tack  —  fire." 

At  the  word  the  old  man  pulled  the  trigger,  but  no  ex- 
plosion followed,  but  instead,  only  a  sputtering  sound ;  for 
the  cartridge  was  a  false  one,  there  not  being  a  grain  of 
powder  in  it.  The  percussion  alone  ignited,  and  driven  by 
its  feeble  force  the  bullet  went  barely  a  rod  and  theu 
dropped  idly  into  the  water. 

The  look  of  disgust  which  swept  into  the  Trapper's  face  as 
he  dropped  the  gun  on  to  the  ground  perfectly  reflected  the 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  273 

state  of  his  feelings.  The  cords  of  his  neck  ridged,  his 
countenance  flushed  with  vexation,  and  the  muscles  of  his 
face  twitched.  For  a  moment  he  stood  glaring  down  at  the 
gun  as  if  he  would  stamp  upon  it  in  his  rage,  while  the 
great  crowd,  hushed  to  silence  at  the  double  misfortune, 
watched  him,  half  frightened  at  the  exhibition  of  repressed 
passion  they  beheld.  At  last  the  humor  of  the  man  pre- 
vailed, his  tense  muscles  relaxed,  and  an  indescribable  look 
of  fun  softened  the  rigid  lines  of  his  face  and  beamed  in  his 
eyes. 

"  Well,  Henry,"  he  said,  "  the  pesky  thing  managed  to  git 
the  victals  out  of  its  mouth  without  wrenchin'  itself,  any- 
how, and»  that's  a  good  deal  for  a  gun  that  is  loaded  in  the 
settlements  and  shot  in  the  woods  to  do."  And  the  Trap- 
per, who  had  now  regained  his  habitual  balance,  laughed  in 
his  silent  fashion,  good  naturedly,  as  he  picked  up  the  piece 
and  handed  it  to  Herbert. 

"  Yis,  jedge,"  he  continued,  as  he  turned  his  face  toward 
the  hotel,  "  Henry  and  me  be  out  of  the  match,  ye  needn't 
tell  us  that.  And  I  am  sorry  for  the  sake  of  the  ladies  that 
I  couldn't  shoot  the  match  out,  but  I've  lived  too  long  amid 
the  unsartanties  of  life  to  be  soured  at  disappintment,  and 
if  they'll  be  patient  they  shall  see  some  shootin'  yit  atween 
Henry  and  me  that'll  make  'em  clap  their  pritty  hands  and 
remember  the  difference  atween  a  rifle  a  hunter  can  trust 
his  life  to  and  a  miserable  invention  that  loads  at  the  wrong 
eend.  And  I  take  ye  all  to  witness,"  continued  the  old  man 
earnestly,  "  that  the  boy  and  me  shot  this  thing  out  like 
men  who  understand  the  vartues  of  a  grooved  bar'l,  ontil 


274  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

the  gun  failed  us.  But  the  Lad  still  has  a  chance,  and  I  sar- 
tinly  hope  the  gun  will  act  like  a  rational  piece  for  the  rest 
of  the  match,  for  the  boy  needs  the  money."  So  saying  the 
Trapper  folded  his  arms  and  turned  his  face  toward  the  dis- 
tant target. 

The  Lad  rose  to  his  feet  and  coming  to  his  side  said :  — 

"John  Norton,  I'm  real  sorry  the  rifle  has  acted  so  to  you 
and  Henry.  Shall  I  shoot  the  match  out  or  stop  now  ?  I 
don't  feel  like  shooting  when  you  and  Henry  can't." 

"  Lord  bless  ye,  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  of  course  ye 
must  shoot  the  match  out.  Ye  aint  to  blame  for  the  gun 
actin'  so.  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  "  come  here.  What 
do  ye  think,  can  the  Lad  win  the  puss  yit  ? " 

For  a  moment  Herbert  made  no  reply.  He  looked  stead- 
ily at  the  Lad,  and  seeing  that  his  face  revealed  not  the 
slightest  trace,  either  of  fear  or  excitement,  he  answered:  — 

"  The  thing  is  likely  to  be  very  close,  closo  enough  to  try 
the  nerves  of  the  steadiest  man  living,  but  the  Lad  is  ahead 
and  if  I  make  no  mistake  in  directing  him,  and  he  shoots 
as  I  tell  him,  the  chances  are  certainly  good  for  his  win- 
ning. 

"  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  and  a  gleam  of  repressed  feel- 
ing shot  from  his  eyes,  "  I  can't  bear  to  have  them  English- 
era  beat.    Can  ye  shoot  as  well  as  ye  have  been  shootin'  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know  why  I  cant,"  said  the  Lad.  "  I  feel  well, 
and  if  you  will  only  set  down  beside  me,  and  Henry  will  tell 
me  where  to  aim,  I  think  I  shall  shoot  as  well  as  I  ever  shot 
in  my  life." 

"  Sit  down  beside  ye?"  said  the  Trapper  laughing.    "  Lord 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  275 

bless  ye,  Lad,  I'll  sit  on  top  of  ye  if  ye  want  me  to,  and  it 
will  help  ye  any.  Come,  Henry,  git  yer  eyes  onto  them 
flags,  for  the  shootin'  must  begin." 

"  I  know,"  said  the  judge,  "that  I  express  the  sentiments 
of  all  this  large  company  when  I  say  that  I  profoundly  re- 
gret the  misfortune  that  has  befallen  two  of  the  contest- 
ants, but  by  the  rules  of  the  match  they  are  ruled  out,  and 
the  three  that  remain  must  complete  their  strings.  They 
will  therefore  prepare  themselves." 

u  Number  One ! " 

The  wind  was  now  blowing  almost  a  gale,  and  the  shot 
struck  fully  ten  inches  from  the  center. 

"  Number  Two !  "  called  the  Judge. 

The  second  Englishman  shot  with  no  better  result. 

"Number  Three!" 

"  Wait ! "  said  Herbert ;  "  now,  ready,  —  three  feet  to  the 
right —  six  inches  above  the  center  —  fire  !  " 

"  Well,  Henry,  ye  didn't  git  that  quite  right,  for  sartin," 
said  the  Trapper,  "  but  the  Lad  did  as  well  as  the  EDglishers, 
anyway." 

14  The  wind  was  a  twisting  one,"  answered  Herbert,  "  and 
I  couldn't  tell  exactly  where  the  strength  of  it  lay." 

"  Was  I  to  blame  ? "  said  the  Lad. 

"Not  a  bit,  not  a  bit,"  answered  the  Trapper;  "ye  shot 
as  well  as  a  mortal  could,  and  ye  haven't  spil't  yer  chances 
a  bit.  I  think  the  puss  will  go  down  to  the  camp  yit  if  yer 
gun  doesn't  bust." 

Again  the  marksmen  were  called  off  in  order,  and  the  re- 
sult was  nearly  the  same.    It  was  still  "  anybody's  match." 


276  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

Only  one  shot  remained,  and  the  excitement  back  of  and 
around  the  marksmen  was  intense. 

The  Englishmen  arose  and  walked  about  a  minute.  They 
talked  a  little  with  their  friends.  Their  faces  were  a  trifle 
pale.  Herbert  stopped  in  swabbing  the  piece  to  wipe  the 
sweat  from  his  forehead.  The  Old  Trapper  looked  steadily 
at  him,  and  said,  in  his  ordinary  tones,  while  his  features 
tightened,  "  I'd  give  twenty  beavers'  skins  if  I  had  the  load- 
in'  of  the  next  cartridge." 

The  Lad,  still  stretched  in  all  his  awkward  length  on  the 
ground,  fixed  his  mild  eyes  on  Herbert  as  he  was  wiping  his 
face,  and  said :  "  What  makes  you  so  hot,  Henry  ?  Do  you 
feel  sick,  anywhere  ? " 

"I  suspect  he  does,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  The  fact  is,  Lad, 
I  don't  feel  quite  right  myself.  Not  that  I've  got  any  great 
pain,  anywhere,  exactly,  but  I  feel  sort  of  hollow-like  at  the 
pit  of  the  stomach." 

"  Mr.  Herbert,"  said  the  gambler,  as  he  struck  a  match 
and  pulled  a  cigar  from  his  pocket,  unconscious  that  he  had 
one  already  in  his  mouth :  "  I  hope  you  won't  make  a  mis- 
take about  them  little  flags.  I've  gone  my  last  dollar  on 
the  Lad  and  I'd  like  to  leave  to-morrow." 

"  Gentlemen,"  said  the  judge,  and  his  voice  was  far  from 
steady,  "  Gentlemen,  will  you  please  stand  back  from  the . 
marksmen  ?  The  decisive  shots  must  now  be  made,  and  I 
can  see  you  are  greatly  excited.  The  marker  reports  that 
the  strings  are -very  close,  and  a  centre  shot  will  decide  it. 
I  shall  now  call :  —  " 

"Number  One!" 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  277 

Even  as  the  call  came  the  wind  suddenly  died  out.  The 
flags  clung  to  their  staffs ;  and,  seizing  the  opportunity) 
Number  One  fired. 

It  was  signalled  as  only  seven  inches  from  the  tack. 

"  Number  Two  ! "  shouted  the  judge. 

Still  the  flags  hung  downward;  the  rifle  cracked,  and  the 
white  disk  was  set  four  inches  from  the  center. 

Still  the  flags  were  motionless;  but  the  trees  on  the 
western  shore  of  the  Lake  swayed  and  bent,  while  the  roar 
of  the  coming  wind  was  plainly  heard  by  the  crowd  who, 
in  front  of  the  hotel,  stood  holding  their  very  breath.  The 
Old  Trapper,  knowing  that  the  gale  would  cross  the  range 
in  an  instant,  and  indignant  at  the  tardiness  in  giving  the 
call,  turned  half  over  on  the  grass  and  shook  his  gigantic 
fist  at  the  judge,  while  his  face  fairly  flamed.  It  is  only 
justice  to  say  that  the  man  was  too  excited  to  speak. 

"  Why  don't  he  give  me  the  word  ? "  said  the  Lad,  in  his 
quiet,  simple  voice. 

"  Cover  the  tack ! "  said  Herbert,  in  a  steady  voice,  though 
the  lips  that  pronounced  the  words  were  white  as  ashes. 
"  Cover  the  tack  —  wait  for  the  word  —  Eeady! " 

"  Number  Three  ! "  shouted  the  judge,  with  a  voice  that 
fairly  broke  into  a  scream,  from  the  tremendous  effort  he 
was  making  to  articulate. 

The  Lad  never  stirred.  His  body  stretched  to  its  full 
length  was  as  limp  as  if  it  contained  not  a  muscle  j  his  eye 
was  at  the  sight ;  his  long  finger  against  the  trigger.  The 
gale  had  struck  the  Lake  and  was  careering  onward  toward 
the  flags.    The  air  was  full  of  dried  stems  and  flying  leaves. 


278  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

The  Old  Trapper's  eyes  were  fixed  on  the  whirlwind  and  his 
fingers  hall-buried  in  the  sod. 

"  Keady  ! "  said  Herbert.   * "  Fi  —  " 

The  full  sound  of  the  word  was  never  heard.  The  crash 
of  the  rifle  drowned  it.  Not  a  lip  moved  until  the  marker 
lifted  the  disk,  and  after  looking  a  moment  placed  it  exactly 
on  the  center. 

"  Glory  to  God ! "  yelled  the  Trapper,  as  he  jumped  to  his 
feet,  and  seizing  the  gambler,  who  happened  to  be  standing 
within  reach,  lifted  him  into  the  air  and  held  him  at  arm's 
length  with  a  single  hand  while  he  swung  the  other  over 
his  head.  "  The  Man  Who  Don't  Know  Much,  and  the  gun 
that  loads  at  the  wrong  eend,  and  the  puss  of  money,  will 
go  to  John  Norton's  camp  together  !  HUERA.H ! " 


CHAPTEE  III. 
THE  MATCH  FOR  THE  SILYER  HORN. 

"  When  Greek  joins  Greek 
Then  comes  the  tug  of  war." 

Nathaniel  Lee. 


rpHE  tumult  which  attended  the  close  of  the  long  range 
match  at  last  subsided.  The  Lad  was  pronounced  the 
winner  of  the  ladies'  purse,  and  the  poor  shrinking  fellow 
was  overwhelmed  with  congratulations.  He  kept  close  by 
the  side  of  the  Trapper  as  a  timid  boy  does  by  the  side  of 
his  father  on  his  first  experience  in  a  city  crowd.  And  in 
truth  it  must  be  said  that  the  old  backwoodsman  was  an 
ample  protection.  Indeed,  it  was  touching  to  see  how  ut- 
terly child-like  was  the  attitude  of  the  Lad  toward  the  Trap- 
per, and  how  fatherly  was  the  bearing  of  the  old  man  toward 
tbe  simple-minded  youth.  In  the  one  was  timidity,  entire 
unacquaintance  with  men,  and  the  painful  sense  of  his  own 
awkwardness  and  lack  of  ability.  In  the  other  was  the 
bold  front,  perfect  self-reliance  and  superb  balance  of  a  man 
of  extraordinary  physique  endowed  by  nature  with  shrewd- 
ness and  wit  and  furnished  with  the  discipline  of  faculty, 
which  a  long  life  spent  in  reflection  and  mingling  with  men 
in  serious  undertakings  alone  can  give.  Because  of  this 
contrast,  perhaps,  the  evident  affection  of  the  younger  for 


280  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

the  older  was  the  more  touching,  and  the  crowd  was  not 
slow  to  perceive  and  be  impressed  by  the  unusual  and  inter 
esting  connection  existing  between  the  two.  It  is  hard  to 
say  which  was  the  stronger  feeling  in  the  bosoms  of  the 
spectators  who  had  watched  the  contest  and  the  two  men : 
admiration  for  the  Trapper,  or  pity  for  the  youth  who,  while 
lacking  in  all  those  attributes  of  body  and  mind  which  com- 
mand applause,  had  nevertheless  given  such  unmistakable 
evidence  of  skill,  generosity  and  genuine  power.  Even  the 
gambler,  who,  under  the  hard,  smooth  complacency  of  cun- 
ning selfisbness,  fostered  by  his  professional  practice,  had  a 
noble,  if  a  cynical  nature,  came  to  the  Lad  and  insisted  on 
"dividing  the  little  pile  with  him,''  as  he  expressed  it;  and 
strove  in  vain  to  make  the  Lad  take  an  enormous  roll  of 
greenbacks  which  he  extended  to  him. 

"  Look  here,  friend,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  pushed  the 
money  back  to  the  gambler,  "  ye  better  put  that  roll  of  rags 
into  yer  own  wicked  pocket,  for,  though  I  don't  wish  to  say 
anything  oncivil  to  ye  or  hurt  yer  feelin's,  yit  I  sartinly  con- 
ceit that  ye  don't  git  yer  skins  by  honest  trapping  but  by 
stealin'  'em  out  of  traps  that  ye  never  set ;  and  though  yer 
practices  may  be  accordin'  to  the  ways  of  the  settlements, 
yit  ye  should  know  that  they  don't  square  with  the  idees 
that  honest  men  have  in  the  woods.  And  if  ye  will  take 
an  old  man's  advice,  whose  head  has  whitened  in  gittin'  an 
honest  livin  accordin'  to  his  gifts,  ye  had  better  quit  yer 
tricky  habits  and  arn  yer  money  in  a  straighter  fashion,  or 
it  will  be  likely  to  go  hard  with  ye  in  the  Jedgment,  when 
ye  are  questioned  about  the  way  ye  got  yer  pelts  and  yer 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  281 

profits  on  the  arth.  And  I  hope  ye  will  take  the  advice  in 
the  sperit  it's  sartinly  given  ye." 

"Old  man,"  said  the  gambler,  as  he  coolly  stuffed  the 
bills  into  one  of  his  capacious  pockets,  "  your  advice  is  cer- 
tainly worthy  of  consideration,  and  I  have  sometimes  thought 
I  had  better  take  a  new  deal  and  play  a  straight  game ;  but 
there's  one  or  two  points  to  be  considered  first,  and  I  don't 
feel  that  I  shall  be  in  quite  the  right  position  to  go  it  alone 
until  you  and  Mr.  Herbert  have  got  through  with  the  little 
business  you  are  coming  to;  and  if  you  can  give  me  a  point 
or  two  as  to  how  the  thing  will  come  out,  you  will  encour- 
age me  to  reach  a  right  conclusion  in  the  matter,  and  put 
me  in  a  condition  of  mind  to  give  due  weight  to  your  judg- 
ment." 

"  It  strikes  me,  friend,  returned  the  Trapper,  "that  ye  are 
haltin'  atween  two  opinions,  as  the  missioners  say,  and  are 
likely  to  go  to  the  devil  arter  all,  if  ye  don't  fetch  up  with 
a  sharp  turn  afore  long.  And  as  to  this  matter  atween 
Henry  and  me,  I  won't  tell  ye  a  word,  for  it's  nip  and  tuck, 
and  neither  the  boy  or  me  know  which  will  win ;  for  the 
pieces  be  parfect,  and  all  that  can  be  done  with  grooved 
bar'ls  both  of  us  can  do.  And  whether  the  horn  will  go 
to  the  settlements,  or  stay  in  the  woods,  no  mortal  can  tell, 
a  id  what  is  better,  neither  of  us  care  j  for  I  dare  say  if  the 
boy  wins  it  he  will  give  it  to  me,  and  if  I  win  it  the  Lord 
knows  I'll  give  it  to  him." 

"  All  right,"  said  the  gambler,  "  I'm  much  obliged  to  you 
for  your  advice,  and  I  guess  I'll  play  cautiously  and  follow 
the  chances." 


282  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

It  is  hard  to  say  which  feehng  predominated  in  the  Trap- 
per's mind,  —  vexation  at  the  thought  that  the  gambler  had 
outwitted  him  and  actually  got  the  "  chances  "  out  of  him, 
or  a  sense  of  humor  at  the  shrewdness  of  the  man,  for  his 
countenance  showed  both  feelings  in  equal  proportion.  He 
was  about  to  reply,  when  the  call  of  the  judge  summoned 
him  to  the  front  of  the  hotel  where  the  shooting  was  to  be 
done.  The  old  man  left  the  spot,  and,  finding  Herbert,  the 
two  proceeded  to  the  lawn,  where  the  committee  of  ar- 
rangements had  already  roped  off  a  space  from  which  the 
marksmen  were  to  shoot. 

"Well,  Squire,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  and  Herbert 
reached  the  judges'  stand,  "  me  and  Henry  have  put  in  our 
appearance  accordin'  to  orders ;  and  are  ready  to  do  what- 
ever ye  ax  us  to  do  if  it  be  in  the  line  of  our  gifts.  And  as 
the  sun  isn't  apt  to  fetch  up  when  it's  fairly  got  started 
down  hill,  ye  might  as  well  set  us  agoin'  as  soon  as  ye  can ; 
for  the  light  will  be  dim  afore  long  and  ye  can't  bring  out 
the  fine  p'ints  of  a  rifle  onless  ye  have  plenty  of  sunshine ; 
so  if  ye've  got  anything  to  tell  us  our  ears  are  open,  as  the 
Hurons  say,  to  yer  words." 

"  Ladies  and  gentlemen,"  said  the  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee of  arrangements,  "  we  have  now  come  to  the  last 
match  of  the  day ;  and  we  think  we  may  safely  say,  with- 
out disparagement  of  tbe  shooting  which  we  have  already 
witnessed,  the  most  interesting  match  of  the  day.  The 
prize  is  a  horn  of  pure  silver  that  will  hold  a  pound  of  pow- 
der, and  is  beautifully  engraved,  as  you  see,  with  an  elegant 
sketch  of  a  deer  and  a  hound  in  full  chase.    It  is  the  most 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  283 

valuable  prize  which  has  been  given ;  and  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  results  of  artistic  skill  that  I  have  ever  seen.  The 
shooting  for  this  prize  must  be  off-hand  and  at  such  distan- 
ces as  the  committee  shall  announce.  The  contestants,  — 
no  one  else  having  entered,  —  are  these  gentlemen  whose 
presence  has  done  so  much  to  enliven  and  make  memorable 
the  sports  both  of  yesterday  and  to-day.  The  object  of  the 
committee  in  this  match  is  to  show  to  all  the  spectators, 
especially  to  those  gentlemen  who  have  visited  us  from 
abroad,  what  the  American  rifle,  in  the  hands  of  skilled  men, 
can  do.  In  other  words  we  desire  to  tax  the  skill  of  the 
contestants,  both  in  respect  to  accuracy  and  quickness  of 
aim.  We  are  fortunate  in  having  been  able  to  secure  the 
presence  of  two  men,  one  of  whom  has  been  noted  for  half" 
a  century  as  one  of  the  best  if  not  the  best  rifle  shot  in 
America,  and  the  other  of  whom  is  known  to  many  of  us  as 
being  an  extraordinary  marksman,  in  reference  to  whose 
skill  no  higher  endorsement  can  be  given  than  his  com- 
panion and  rival  in  the  match  has  freely  bestowed.  The 
two  contestants,  I  need  not  say  in  this  allusion,  are  Mr.  Her- 
bert and  the  Old  Trapper,  John  Norton.  And  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  we  shall  see  a  very  fine  and  exciting  contest,  —  the 
strong  friendship  existing  between  the  competitors  making 
it  all  the  more  novel  and  delightful.  The  shooting  will  be 
of  a  character  that  cannot  be  decided  by  measurement  in 
inches  and  fractions  of  inches,  but  must  be  left  for  decision 
to  the  judgment  of  the  committee ;  and  even  of  the  two 
marksmen  themselves." 
"  That's  it,  jedge,  that's  it,  —  me  and  Henry  knows  what 


284  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

shootin'  is,  and  either  of  us  be  parfectly  willin'  to  own  up 
beat  if  the  p'ints  of  the  case  be  plain.  Ye  see  he  and  me 
understand  each  other  j  and  though  the  boy  might  be  too 
modest  to  say  it,  yit  in  his  innermost  feelin's  he  knows  jest 
as  well  as  I  do  that  it's  nip  and  tuck  atween  us ;  and  that  a 
slow  burnin'  cap  or  a  hollow  bullet  that'll  bust  in  the  air  or 
go  onsteady,  is  more  likely  to  decide  the  matter  than  any 
difference  atween  us  as  to  quickness  of  eye  and  touch.  And 
I  want  ye  all  to  understand  that  while  we  shall  shoot  honest 
aud  true,  each  doin'  his  best,  and  leavin'  his  chances  to  for- 
tin,  yit  we  don't  care  the  tail  of  a  beaver  which  wins,  and 
look  upon  it  more  as  a  cheerful  divarsion  or  a  leetle  camp 
practice  on  a  lazy  day,  than  any  tight  atween  us." 

"  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  judge,  "  we  all  understand  it,  John 
Norton.  We  all  understand  how  it  is  between  you  and  Mr. 
Herbert,  although  he  will  not  feel  offended  if  I  say  that  we 
do  not  credit  him.  with  such  skill  as  your  reputation  has 
secured  to  you.  But  whichever  way  it  goes  we  will  look 
upon  it  as  a  bit  of  friendly  sport  between  you  and  not  as 
an  antagonistic  contest.  For,  whichever  wins,  we  know 
that  we  shall  have  an  exhibition  that  will  show  us  whatever 
is  possible  in  rifle  practice  j  and  it  is  proper  for  me  to  an- 
nounce to  the  company,  and  to  say  to  you,  that  as  the  ob- 
ject is  to  bring  out,  in  the  best  light,  your  skill,  we  shall  feel 
permitted  to  consult  you  as  the  match  proceeds,  if  circum- 
stances make  it  necessary." 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  ye  may  ax  us  any- 
thin'  ye  are  a  mind  to,  and  ye'll  fiud  our  heads  as  clear  as  a 
quill  on  the  p'ints  of  the  case.    Only  git  to  work  as  soon  as 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  285 

ye  can,  for  natur'  has  got  the  sun  goin'  down  hill,  and  he's 
histin'  along  like  a  thievin'  half-breed  with  an  honest  trap- 
per at  his  heels." 

"  The  shooting  for  the  silver  horn  will  now  begin,"  said 
the  judge,  "  and  the  first  trial  will  be  at  fifty  yards.  Two 
shots  from  each  marksmen.  The  target  is  a  four  inch  diam- 
eter ring  of  white,  centered  by  a  tack  with  the  head  the  size 
of  a  bullet."  And  as  he  spoke  the  target  was  placed  at  the 
distance  mentioned  in  such  a  way  that  the  sun  lighted  it 
perfectly.  The  two  men  stood  side  by  side,  each  holding  in 
his  hands  his  favorite  gun,  a  double  rifle  with  both  "open" 
and  "  globe  and  bead  "  sights,  both  made  by  Lewis,  of  Troy, 
and  so  nearly  alike  that  were  it  not  for  the  slight  difference 
in  the  ornamentation  of  the  stocks  they  could  scarcely  have 
been  distinguished  one  from  the  other.  The  lock  of  either 
could  be  worked  with  or  without  the  "set." 

" I  hope,"  said  the  Trapper,  "ye  have  got  more  than  one 
tack  in  that  keerd-board,  or  ye  had  better  start  a  boy  for  the 
carpenter  shop."  And  as  he  spoke  the  muzzle  of  his  rifle 
was  lifted  into  the  air,  dropped  suddenly  into  the  palm  of 
his  outstretched  hand,  and  exploded.  The  target,  as  the 
Trapper  had  predicted,  fell  at  the  explosion  to  the  ground. 

A  murmur  of  delight  rustled  through  the  crowd. 

"  No,  no  !  "  said  the  Trapper.  "  No,  no,  jedge,  ye  needn't 
send  the  boy  for  the  tack,  for  the  hole  that  the  lead  made 
shows  daylight  through  it,  and  I  warrant  that  Henry  has  a 
key  that'll  fit  it."  And  even  as  he  spoke  the  rifle  of  Henry 
rose  to  its  aim,  with  a  motion  but  a  little  less  careless  appar- 
ently, than  had  been  the  movement  of  the  Trapper's,  and 


286  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

exploded,  and  the  bullet  passed  so  neatly  through  the  ori- 
fice made  by  the  former  that  scarcely  a  splinter  was  stirred 
around  the  ragged  edges  of  the  hole. 

"  That's  a  true  piece  of  your'n,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  and 
many. a  scrimmage  with  the  red  skins  have  I  had  when  its 
crack  would  have  been  better  than  a  psalm  tune  in  my  ear. 
Yis,  the  two  pieces  be  pitched  on  one  key,  as  the  fiddlers 
say,  when  they  are  tuning  for  a  jig."  And  while  he  had 
been  talking,  the  rifle  had  again  been  lifted,  settled  into  his 
hand,  and  at  the  closing  word  cracked  strong  and  clear. 
The  smoke  had  not  vanished  in  the  air  before  the  piece  of 
Herbert  responded,  and  the  first  trial  was  over. 

"  There,  jedge,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  ye'll  find  that  hole 
bored  by  a  sharp  auger  and  cut  in  a  business-like  way.  I 
shall  sartinly  be  surprised  if,  when  ye  put  yer  eye  to  the 
hole  and  turn  it  up  to  the  sky,  ye  can  see  any  shape  in  it 
but  what  three  bullets  ought  to  make  when  they  foller  each 
other  as  straight  as  young  otters  swimmin'  a  crick." 

The  board  was  inspected  by  the  judges,  and  then  it 
started  on  its  mission  among  the  crowd.  And  as  the  Old 
Trapper  had  predicted,  no  eye  could  detect  that  more  than 
one  bullet  had  passed  through  the  opening,  unless,  perhaps, 
it  were  slightly  enlarged  and  freer  of  splinters  than  would 
have  been  the  case  had  but  one  bullet  penetrated  it . 

The  Trapper  and  Herbert  cleaned  their  rifles  and  re- 
charged them  with  the  painstaking  carefulness  of  men  who 
thoroughly  understand  how  delicate  are  the  causes  which 
command  success  in  such  work  as  they  were  now  being 
called  upon  to  do ;  and  how  the  slightest  neglect  in  the 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  287 

treatment  of  their  guns  would  endanger  success.  Indeed, 
if  the  two  pieces  had  been  animate  and  sensitive  to  their 
touch  they  could  not  have  handled  them  with  greater  care, 
nor  treated  them  with  more  tender  regard. 

"All  right,  Squire,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  lifted  the 
piece  into  the  hollow  of  his  palm,  "  Henry  and  me  be  ready 
for  any  other  leetle  playfulness  ye  may  p'int  out  to  us." 

"  Has  any  one  a  pack  of  cards,"  said  the  judge.  "  Per- 
haps our  friend  here,  has  some,"  —  and  he  turned  to  the 
gambler,  who  chanced  to  be  standing  near  him. 

"  It  is  very  singular,"  said  our  silent  friend,  as  he  drew  a 
pack  out  of  his  pocket,  "  that  I  happen  to  have  such  an  ar- 
ticle about  me.  I  don't  remember  how  they  happened  to 
get  into  my  pocket.  I  presume  that  my  wife  made  a  mis- 
take and  put  them  in  instead  of  something  else  about  the 
same  size,  which  she  has  a  fondness  for  advising  me  to  carry 
around  with  me.  If  these  aren't  colored  just  right,"  said 
he,  as  he  pulled  out  another  pack,  "  it  may  be  these  will 
suit  better.  Or,  if  the  Old  Trapper,  whom  I  owe  something 
for  good  advice  he  has  given  me  to-day,  would  fancy  a  more 
neutral  tint,  I'll  just  step  «p  to  my  chamber  and  see  what 
there  may  be  in  the  bottom  of  the  trunk." 

"  Lord,  Lord !  "  said  the  Trapper,  "  ye  haven't  a  cart-load 
of  the  pesky  pictur's  have  ye  ?  Them  leetle  keerds  will  sar- 
tinly  bo  the  death  of  ye  yit  j  and  I  dare  say  this  is  the  only 
honest  use  they  was  ever  put  to.  As  for  the  color,  it  don't 
make  any  difference,  jedge,  if  Henry  and  me  can  only  see 
the  spots  through  the  sights." 

In  a  moment  the  deuce  of  spades  was  fastened  to  the  tar- 


288  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

get,  by  a  tack  driven  at  an  equal  distance  between  the  spots, 
and  the  crowd  stood  expectant. 

"  I  want  to  have  ye  understand,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  and 
I  want  the  wimmen  folks  to  understand,  that  me  and  Her- 
bert don't  call  this  anything  more  than  common  shootin', 
fur  the  markin'  shows  plain  and  the  light  is  good,  and  the 
distance  is  no  greater  than  the  eye  can  manage.  But  it's 
good  enough,  perhaps,  to  start  with,  and  it  may  be"  —  and 
here  his  piece  exploded  —  "  we'll  git  down  to  some  raal  fine 
work  arter  a  while.  No,  no,"  continued  he,  as  the  target 
tender  was  about  to  inspect  the  target,  "  ye  needn't  look  at 
the  leetle  keerd,  for  the  bullet  is  in  the  upper  spot,  and  the 
reason  it  don't  show  is  because  the  patch  of  ink  is  bigger 
than  the  hole  that  the  lead  made.  Come,  Henry,  git  the 
lead  out  of  yer  gun,  for  we  don't  want  to  fool  away  any 
time  in  gittin'  ready  to  do  some  raal  shootin'.  There,  jedge," 
continued  the  old  man,  whose  words  had  been  scarcely  di- 
vided in  their  utterance  by  the  crack  of  Herbert's  piece  — 
"now  there  is  two  bullets  that  is  eenamost  as  big  as  the 
markin's  on  the  keerd,  and  yit  ye'll  find  that  ye  can't  see 
even  the  grease  stain  that  the  lead  made  when  it  passed 
through,  beyend  the  black.  It  may  be  handier  for  the  boy 
to  bring  the  keerd  in  if  he  has  that  tack  drawed  for  him, 
and  so  to  save  time  we'll  start  it  a  leetle."  And  even  with 
the  words  the  smoke  burst  from  the  muzzle  of  his  rifle,  and 
the  card  fluttered  downward  to  the  earth. 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  feelings  of  the  spectators. 
The  shooting  had  been  so  accurate  as  to  astonish  them; 
and  yet  the  aim  of  the  marksmen  had  been  so  quick  that  it 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  289 

bordered  apparently  on  carelessness  —  the  carelessness  of 
studied  art,  or  else  of  men  who,  in  doing  what  they  had 
done,  had  not  felt  themselves  called  upon  to  bring  into  ex- 
ercise the  resources  of  that  ability  which  had  given  to  one 
a  fame  beyond  question,  and  had  made  for  the  other  the 
reputation  of  being  the  only  man  who  could  compete  with 
him. 

The  committee  conferred  apart  for  a  moment,  and  then 
they  produced  a  bottle,  and,  turning  to  the  Trapper,  the 
judge  said :  — 

"  We  have  heard,  John  Norton,  that  you  have  been  seen 
to  uncork  a  bottle  like  this  with  your  bullet  at  fifty  paces." 

"Sartinly,  sartinly,"  said  the  Trapper.  "It  is  no  great 
thing  to  do,  and  I  dare  say  Henry,  here,  has  done  the  same 
hundreds  of  times ;  and  it  is  the  only  way  in  which  a  rifle- 
mau  can  use  the  bottle  and  keep  the  sartinty  of  his  aim. 
For  there's  nothin'  that  upsets  a  man's  narves  more  than 
drinkin',  and  I  never  seed  a  man,  who  was  a  rum-drinker, 
have  eyes  wuth  a  cent  when  ye  come  down  to  fine  work  — 
'specially  on  a  windy  day.  But  Henry  and  me  will  uncork 
as  many  bottles,  as  ye  want  us  to,  and  we'll  never  start  a 
flake  from  the  nozzle,  and  we  won't  upset  a  bottle  nuther." 

The  Englishmen  who  were  standing  by,  and  who  were 
getting  intensely  interested  in  the  shooting  they  had  already 
seen,  plainly  stated  to  those  standing  nigh,  their  utter  in- 
credulity that  such  a  feat  could  be  performed.  And  in  cour- 
teous phrase  they  plainly  stated  the  same  to  the  committee, 
and  even  to  the  Trapper  himself. 

"  Look  here,  jedge,"  said  the  old  man,  "  talkin'  about  it 


290  ADIBONDACK  TALES. 

won't  do  it,  and  the  thing  can  be  done,  you  can  depend  on't 
But  if  ye  want  to  see  Henry  and  me  git  right  down  to  the 
work,  and  if  ye  want  to  see  what  bar'ls  we've  got  to  squint 
over,  ye  had  better  bring  out  some  of  them  bottles  whose 
corks  are  wired  down ;  for  while  eenamost  anybody,  who 
has  the  gift  of  handlin'  the  rifle,  can  uncork  the  common 
bottles,  yit  it  takes  an  oncommon  bai^l,  and  a  sharp 
eye,  and  a  finger  that  knows  how  to  work  with  it,  to  draw 
one  of  them  wired  kind.  But  it  can  be  did,  and  here  be  the 
men  and  here  be  the  guns  that  can  do  it." 

The  murmurs  and  ejaculations  which  rose  from  the  crowd 
revealed  the  fact  that  the  incredulity  was  felt  not  only  by 
the  Englishmen,  but  by  the  spectators,  also.  Indeed,  dis- 
cussions started  on  the  instant.  Here  and  there  a  voice 
was  heard  declaring  the  certainty  of  its  being  done.  Here 
and  there  a  guide  positively  declared  that  he  had  seen  Her- 
bert do  it.  And  the  gambler,  acting  true  to  the  instinct  of 
his  profession,  boldly  declared,  with  mock  seriousness,  that 
he  "  had  no  faith  in  the  bottle,  and  would  back  the  Trapper 
against  it  two  to  one." 

While  all  this  had  been  going  on,  the  clerk  of  the  hotel 
had  produced  four  champagne  bottles,  whose  corks  were 
quite  prominent,  but  most  thoroughly  wired  down ;  and 
having  been  inspected  by  the  Englishman  and  the  Commit- 
tee, they  were  placed  on  the  railing  that  ran  round  the  lake 
side  of  the  wharf. 

"  Now,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he  tapped  the  stock  of 
his  rifle,  "  there  aint  but  two  guns  in  the  woods  that  a  man 
could  depend  on  to  do  sech  a  job,  and  they  be  twins.    And 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  291 

there  sartinly  aint  but  two  men  who  can  draw  them  corks 
in  the  way  the  boy  and  me  will  sartinly  do ;  qnless  some- 
thing onusual  happens.  Henry/'  said  the  Old  Trapper, 
"ye* take  the  one  to  the  left,  and  be  keerful  of  the  glint  of 
the  sun  on  the  nozzle,  for  its  likely  to  divart  the  aim.  Now, 
jedge,  ye  put  yer  eyes  onto  that  cork,  and  Fll  give  ye  the 
silver  horn  if  ye  can  tell  where  it  goes  to." 

If  there  had  been  any  carelessness  in  the  action  of  the 
Trapper  and  Herbert  in  their  previous  efforts,  there  cer- 
tainly was  none  now  in  the  movements  of  the  young  man 
as  he  prepared  to  perform  the  extraordinary  feat  that  he 
was  called  upon  to  do. 

The  crowd  became  breathless.  The  silence  was  as  pro- 
found as  it  could  possibly  be.  He  straightened  himself  to 
his  full  height,  advanced  his  left  foot,  pressed  the  trigger  to 
the  set,  and,  lifting  the  rifle  to  his  shoulder,  passed  his  eye 
into  the  sight,  and,  with  a  motion  as  true  and  precise  as  if 
the  muzzle  was  being  moved  in  steel  grooves,  the  barrels  be- 
gan to  pass  from  right  to  left  toward  the  cork.  And  even 
when  it  exploded,  the  rifle  was  still  in  motion,  and  so  little 
had  the  discharge  disturbed  the  marksman  that  the  motion, 
with  the  same  precision,  continued  an  instant  after  the  bul- 
let had  been  sped.  The  bottle  waved  a  trifle  on  its  base, 
spun  half  round  and  stopped,  and  the  eyes  of  the  specta- 
tors saw,  no  longer  restrained,  the  froth  of  the  spirited  con- 
tents foaming  out  of  the  mouth. 

"  I  am  sorry  ye  started  the  bottle,  Henry.  Yis,  I  am  sar- 
tinly sorry  ye  started  the  bottle ;  and  I  don't  understand 
the  reason  of  it,  boy.    I  should  eenamost  think  that  ye 


292  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

wasn't  quite  parfect  in  yer  narves,  to-day,  onless  I  had 
watched  ye  in  yer  aim.  What  was  the  reason  of  the  jog- 
gle, Henry  ?  Did  the  tumbler  creep  a  leetle,  or  wasn't  the 
tube  quite  free  ?  " 

"The  wires  over  the  corks  are  unusually  strong,"  said 
Herbert. 

"  It  may  be  so,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  If  ye  say  it's  so,  it 
must  be  so,  and  we'll  see  if  it  is  so  in  a  minit,  for  the  same 
thing  don't  happen  twice  onless  there  is  reason  in  it." 

The  old  man  paused.  He  looked  au  instant  at  the  minute 
mark  ahead  of  him,  drew  himself  up,  advanced  his  left  foot 
lightly,  and  as  his  huge  frame  came  to  its  perfect  balance  — 
in  a  pose  that  an  artist  would  have  loved  to  sketch, — he 
swept  his  rifle  upward,  and  dropping  it  into  his  extended 
hand,  it  rested  there  for  an  instant,  while  his  eye  settled  into 
the  sight,  and  then  burst  out  its  flame. 

So  intense  was  the  nervous  tension  on  the  part  of  the 
spectators,  that  nearly  every  individual  member  of  the 
crowd  actually  jumped  as  the  rifle  cracked.  The  bottle 
swayed,  spun  round,  tottled  for  an  instant,  then  stopped, 
while  the  iroth  spurted  sharply  a  foot  or  more  into  the  air. 

"  That's  enough,"  said  the  judge.  "  That's  enough,"  he 
repeated;  and  the  Englishmen  nodded  as  he  looked  at 
them,  "  I  have  seen  what  I  never  would  have  believed  had 
I  not  seen  it." 

"  Yis,  yis,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  it  is  enough ;  and  ye  see 
the  boy  was  right.  The  wire  is  strong,  as  he  said,  and  the 
corks  set  deep  in  and  the  thing  can't  be  did  without  jostlin' 
the  bottle.    But  ye  give  me  a  common  bottle  and  a  common 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  293 

cork,  and  Henry  and  me  will  snap  'em  out  for  ye  without 
startin'  a  ripple  on  the  liquor  inside." 

"Now,"  said  the  judge,  "we  will  give  you  a  flying  shot. 
And  the  man  that  stands  the  test  will  get  the  silver  horn." 

"Ye'll  have  to  split  it,  then,"  said  the  Trapper;  "fori  can 
see  that  Henry's  warmin'  to  the  work,  and  his  piece  is  work- 
in'  to  parfection.    What  be  the  trial,  jedge  ?  " 

u  It  is  this,"  was  the  reply,  and  he  took  a  couple  of  pota- 
toes from  his  pocket  and  handed  them  to  the  Lad. 

"  All  right,"  said  the  Trapper.  "  Yer  language  is  as  plain 
as  the  pictur'  talk  of  the  redskins.  Now,  Lad,  toss  'em 
straight  and  toss  'em  high.  Henry,  you  take  the  fust  one, 
and  I'll  take  the  second.  Now,  Lad,  wait  for  the  word. 
Eeady  with  yer  piece,  Henry.     One,  two,  three,  heaye  !  " 

The  Lad  pitched  the  potato  at  the  word.  It  mounted  up- 
ward into  the  air,  and  as  it  came  to  the  apex  of  its  flight, 
Herbert's  rifle  cracked,  and  the  potato  disappeared. 

"  Heave  agin  !  "  said  the  Trapper,  and  while  the  potato 
which  the  lad  pitched  earnestly  into  the  air  was  still  going 
up,  the  bullet  of  the  Trapper  caught  it  and  drove  it  into  a 
thousand  pieces ! 

"  There,"  said  the  Trapper  to  the  judge,  "  Henry  showed 
ye  the  science  of  the  thing,  for  he  waited  as  a  man  should, 
when  life  or  honor  depend  on  his  shot,  and  took  it  at  the 
proper  p'int.  And  I  showed  ye  the  trick  of  the  thing,  and 
shot  as  a  man  who  is  over- sure  of  his  game,  and  don't  wait  till 
his  jedgment  tells  him  to  act.  Yis,  the  boy's  shot  was  a 
jedgmatical  one,  and  shows  that  he  mixes  his  brains  with 
his  powder  when  he  shoots  j  and  that  will  sartinly  win  agin 


294  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

haste  if  there  be  chances  enough.  I  don't  think  that  ye 
know  for  sartin,  who  has  got  that  horn,  yit,  jedge  ! "  and  the 
Old  Trapper  laughed  till  his  great  strong  face  fairly  beamed 
with  good  nature. 

"Come,  jedge,  what  have  ye  got  next?  The  pieces  be 
ready,  and  the  horn  don't  know  whether  it's  goin'  to  the 
settlements  or  stay  in  the  woods  yit." 

"  We've  got  but  one  more,"  responded  the  judge,  and  the 
committee  did  not  dream  that  they  would  have  to  resort  to 
it.  Nor  do  we  suppose  now  that  it  will  be  of  any  avail,  for 
we  firmly  believe,  as  do  all  to  whom  we  have  mentioned  it, 
that  it  is  beyond  the  possibility  of  human  skill  to  accom- 
plish. The  target  will  be  a  flying  one,  and  it  will  not  be 
revealed  to  you  until  it  is  in  swiftest  motion  j  for  we  shall 
place  your  backs  to  us  and  deliver  it  over  your  heads.  You 
may  take  positions ;  and  we  trust  you  will  not  blame  us  if 
the  trial  should  seem  unreasonable. 

"  Lord-a-massy,  jedge,  Henry  and  me  don't  care  what  ye 
start  agoin'  over  our  heads,  for  there  be  nothin  that  goes  so 
fast  that  a  bullet  can't  overtake  it,  onless  it  be  another  bul- 
let ;  and  ye  may  heave  anything  ye  are  a  mind  to  and  set  it 
travellin'  as  fast  as  ye  please,  and  I  warrant  that  we'll  stop 
it  for  ye  afore  it  gits  a  hundred  feet  from  the  muzzle  of  our 
guns.  Come,  boy,  back  up ;  the  Lord  only  knows  whether 
it  is  a  stun  or  a  pauther  that  the  jedge  has  got  in  his  hands, 
and  the  sooner  the  thing  gets  in  motion,  the  quicker  we'll 
git  our  eyes  onto  it." 

The  two  men  stationed  themselves  in  front  of  the  judge 
with  their  backs  towards  him  —  each  in  position,  and  each 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  295 

rifle  at  a  poise.  In  a  moment  the  crowd  actually  shook  and 
swayed  with  tumult.  Laughter,  and  roars,  and  exclama- 
tions such  as  "  That  isn't  fair ! "  "Yes,  it  is  too,"  "Let  them 
try  it  anyhow.  There  isn't  much  danger  that  they'll  hit  it." 

"  Are  you  ready,  gentlemen  ? "  said  the  judge  ? 

"Sartinly,  sartinly,"  responded  the  Trapper,  "let  her 
come,  jedge  j  panther  or  stun,  or  whatever  it  is,  the  pieces 
will  bust  if  they  wait  much  longer." 

"  Keady  'tis,"  said  the  judge.     "  Now  \ " 

He  opened  his  hands,  stretched  over  the  heads  of  the 
two  men.  A  whirr,  a  buzz,  a  roar  of  wings,  and  a  brown 
object  glanced  through  the  air  straight  from  the  two  men  as 
a  bullet  could  spin. 

A  flash  of  lightning  is  not  quicker  than  was  the  motion 
of  the  two  guns,  as  they  were  swept  to  their  level.  The 
explosion  of  one  of  the  pieces,  at  least,  did  not  wait.  The 
partridge  had  not  gone  a  hundred  feet  before  the  bullet  of 
Herbert's  gun  overtook  it,  and  actually  blew  it  into  frag- 
ments ! 

The  Trapper  had  not  fired.  He  had  checked  himself  in 
the  very  act  of  pulling  the  trigger  —  his  rifle  dropped  into 
the  hollow  of  his  arm,  and  turning  to  Henry  he  said :  — 

"  The  life  that  the  Maker  gives  them  is  sweet  to  his  cree- 
tur's,  Henry,  and  may  the  Lord  forgive  ye  for  takin',  without 
cause,  the  life  that  ye  cannot  give  back  to  the  bird.  No, 
no,  boy,  I  don't  blame  ye ;  ye  was  taken  onawares,  and  it 
was  quick  work,  and  I  come  near  jinin'  in  the  murder  my- 
self. I  tell  ye,  Squire,"  said  the  old  man,  as  he  turned  to 
the  judge,  "  ye  have  did  au  onwise  thing,  and  in  yer  mer- 


296  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

riment  made  an  innocent  man  do  a  deed  he  would  not  nat- 
erally  do.  No,  no,  the  horn  isn't  worth  a  life  to  John  Nor- 
ton, even  if  that  life  be  the  life  of  the  smallest  of  God's 
creeturs ;  onless  the  takin'  of  it  can  be  of  sarvice  to  man/ 

The  Old  Trapper  had  said  this  with  all  the  solemn  gravity 
of  a  man  who  was  speaking  from  the  conviction  not  only  of 
principle,  but  of  a  life-long  practice,  and  as  one  who  had 
forgotten  in  the  larger  and  graver  thought,  the  smaller  and 
lighter  one  of  the  sports  around  him.  And  as  he  closed, 
he  turned  to  Henry  in  the  act  of  speaking ;  but  Herbert  — 
who,  while  he  sympathized  with  the  old  man's  sentiments, 
and  deeply  regretted  that,  betrayed  by  the  suddenness  of 
the  event,  he  had  unnecessarily  taken  a  life — was  never- 
theless anxious,  lest,  in  the  mind  of  some  of  the  crowd,  not 
to  say  in  the  mind  of  the  judge  himself,  the  Old  Trapper's 
fame  might  suffer,  checked  him  by  the  motion  of  his  hand, 
and  pointed  his  finger  out  over  the  lake. 

The  old  man's  face  lighted,  for  he  saw  not  only  what  Her- 
bert had  pointed  at,  —  a  large  fleecy  plume,  that,  torn  from 
the  skin  of  the  bird,  was  still  drifting  in  the  golden  air,  — 
but  also  the  generous  thought  of  his  companion's  heart  for 
him.    He  turned  to  the  judge,  and  said :  — 

"  Do  ye  see,  jedge,  what  the  boy  means?  Do  ye  see  that 
bit  of  down  floatin'  out  there  across  the  sun,  that  came  from 
the  back  of  the  bird  ?  The  boy  wants  me  to  shoot  at  it ; 
for  he  fears  lest  the  man  whose  head  has  whiteued  in  the 
woods  should  lose  his  fame  here,  to-day ;  and  I'm  glad  he 
has  done  what  he  has  done,  for  while  it's  nothin'  he  can't 
do  himself,  yit  it  is  enough  to  show  these  ladies,  here,  and 


THE  TtfAN  THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  297 

yerself,  too,  that  John  Norton's  finger  did  not  quit  the  trig- 
ger when  he  lined  the  sights  on  the  bird  because  he  feared 
his  lead  would  go  wild." 

"Now,  Henry,"  he  continued,  "yer  heart  is  right  to- 
ward an  old  man,  and  he'll  remember  yer  thought  in 
his  behalf  when  the  miles  be  atween  us,  and  ye  be  in  the 
settlements  amid  many  and  I  be  by  the  fire  in  the  cabin 
alone.  Yis;  boy,  it's  nothing  ye  can't  do,  for  ye  have  mas- 
tered the  weepou,  and  if  I  could  live  my  life  over,  I  would 
ask  no  better  way  of  spendiu'  it  than  of  spendin'  it  together 
with  ye  in  the  woods,  for  yer  piece  and  yer  heart  is  both 
true.  Yis,  ye  sartinly  could  do  it,  but  ye  sartinly  couldn't 
do  it  quicker  than  this ! "  —  and  with  a  motion  so  quick  that 
those  who  stood  nighest  to  him  started  back,  the  old  man 
jerked  his  rifle  into  the  air,  and  before  it  would  seem  it  were 
possible  for  hand  and  eye  to  have  come  into  conjunction 
the  smoke  belched  out  from  the  muzzle,  and  the  golden 
colored  plume  that  had  come  from  the  poor  bird's  back, 
lying  swathed  as  it  was  in  the  warm  red  rays  of  the  declin- 
ing sun,  darted  forward  through  the  air  as  if  a  minute  jet 
of  wind  had  struck  it  in  the  center,  and  when  it  stopped, 
the  two  halves  floated  off  and  stood  inches  apart. 

The  shooting  was  ended.  The  voice  of  the  judge  only  ex- 
pressed the  unanimous  feeling  of  the  crowd  when  he  pro- 
claimed "that  no  further  trial  could  with  propriety  be  made, 
and  that  the  silver  horn  would  be  given  to  the  two  contest- 
ants }  leaving  it  in  their  hands  as  their  joint  property." 

A  happier  conclusion,  or  one  more  gratifying  to  Herbert 
and  the  Trapper,  or  to  the  spectators,  could  not  have  tor-* 


298  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

minated  the  day's  sports.  In  connection  with  the  announce- 
ment the  committee  of  arrangements  further  proclaimed 
that  in  honor  of  the  occasion,  the  proprietor  of  the  hotel 
would  furnish  an  entertainment  to  the  guests  of  the  house 
and  the  visitors  from  the  adjoining  houses,  who  could  make 
it  convenient  to  remain,  and  that  the  evening  would  be 
spent  in  merry-making —  of  which  music  and  dancing  would 
form  an  attractive  and  prominent  feature.  In  short,  they 
proposed  to  have  a  ball  1 


CHAPTEK  IV. 

THE  BALL. 

"And  his  the  music  to  whose  tone 
The  common  pulse  of  man  keeps  time, 
In  cot  or  castle,  mirth  or  moan, 
•     In  cold  or  sunny  clime."  —  Halleck. 

~TT  was  evening — dark,  cool  and  starry.  The  earth  and 
water  lay  hidden  in  the  dusky  gloom.  Above,  the  stars 
were  at  their  brightest.  They  gleamed  and  glowed,  flashed 
and  scintillated,  like  jewels  fresh  from  the  case.  Their  fires 
were  many-colored  —  orange,  yellow  and  red ;  and  here  and 
there  a  great  diamond  fastened  into  the  zone  of  night,  sent 
out  its  intense,  colorless  brilliancy.  Through  all  the  air 
silence  reigned.  The  winds  had  died  away,  and  the  waters 
had  settled  to  repose.  No  gurgle  along  the  shore  j  no 
splash  against  the  great  logs  that  made  the  wharf;  no  bird 
of  night  calling  to  its  mate.  Outside  all  was  still.  Nature 
had  drawn  the  curtains  around  her  couch,  and,  screened 
from  sight,  lay  in  profound  repose. 

Within  all  was  light,  and  bustle,  and  gayety.  From  every 
window  lights  streamed  and  flashed.  The  large  parlors 
were  alive  with  moving  forms.  The  piano,  whose  white 
keys  were  swept  by  whiter  hands,  tinkled  and  rang  in  live- 
liest measure.    The  dance  was  at  its  height  j  and  the  very 


300  ADIRONDACK   TALEd. 

floor  seemed  vibrant  with  the  pressure  of  lively  feet.  The 
daDcers  advanced,  retired,  wheeled  and  swayed  in  easy  cir- 
cles, swept  up  and  down,  and  across  the  floor  in  graceful 
lines. 

Amid  the  happy  scene  the  Old  Trapper  stood,  his  stalwart 
frame  erect  as  in  his  prime  j  while  his  great  strong  face 
fairly  beamed  in  benediction  upon  the  dancers.  For  his  na- 
ture had  within  its  depths  that  fine  capacity  which  enabled 
it  to  receive  the  brightness  of  surrounding  happiness  and 
reflect  it  again. 

It  was  a  study  to  watch  his  face,  and  mark  the  passage 
of  his  changeful  moods :  surprise,  delight,  and  broad,  warm- 
hearted humor,  as  they  came  to  and  played  across  the  re- 
sponsive features.  The  man  of  the  woods,  of  the  lonely 
shore,  and  of  silence,  seemed  perfectly  at  home  amid  the 
noise  and  commotion  of  human  merry-making. 

At  last  the  music  died  away.  The  dancers  checked  their 
feet.  The  lady  who  had  been  playing  the  piano  rose  weari- 
ly from  the  instrument  and  joined  a  group  of  friends.  The 
music  was  not  adequate.  The  notes  were  too  sharp  j  too 
isolate ;  they  did  not  flow  together.  There  was  no  sweep 
and  swing,  nor  suavity  of  connected  progress  in  the  strains. 
The  instrument  could  not  lift  the  dancers  up  and  swing  them 
onward  through  the  mazy  motions. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  as  he  turned  to 
Herbert  who  was  standing  by  his  side,  "  the  pianer  isn't  the 
thing  to  dance  by,  for  sartin.  It  tinkles  and  chippers  too 
much ;  it  rattles  and  clicks.  It  don't  git  hold  of  the  feel- 
in's,  Henry ;  —  it  don't  start  the  blood  in  yer  veins,  nor  set 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  301 

yer  skin  tinglin',  nor  make  the  feet  dance  agin  yer  will.  It's 
good  enough  in  it's  way,  no  doubt ;  but  it  sai  tinly  isn't  the 
thing  to  lift  the  young  folks  up  and  swing  'em  round.  The 
fiddle  is  the  thing  j  —  yis,  the  fiddle  is  sartiuly  the  thing.  I 
would  give  a  good  deal  if  we  had  a  fiddle  here  to-night,  for 
I  see  the  boys  and  girls  miss  it.  Lord-a-massy !  how  it 
would  set  'em  agoin'  if  we  only  had  a  fiddle  here." 

"  John  Norton,"  said  the  Lad,  who  was  sitting  on  a  chair 
hidden  away  behind  the  Trapper,  "  John  Norton,"  and  the 
Lad  took  hold  of  the  sleeve  of  his  jacket  and  gulled  the 
Trapper's  head  down  towards  him,  "  would  you  like  to  hear 
a  violin  to-night  ? " 

"Like  to  hear  a  fiddle  ?  Lord  bless  ye  Lad,  I  guess  I  would 
like  to  hear  a  fiddle.  I  never  seed  a  time  I  wouldn't  give 
the  best  beaver  hide  in  the  lodge  to  hear  the  squeak  of  the 
bow  on  the  strings.  What's  the  matter  with  ye,  Lad! 
What  makes  ye  look  so,  boy  "l " 

Well  might  he  ask  the  question,  for  the  Lad's  face  was 
absolutely  radiant.  His  eyes  were  glowing  and  his  lips 
fairly  apart  as  if  with  suppressed  eagerness,  the  eagerness 
of  restrained  excitement. 

"  John  Norton  ! "  said  the  Lad,  and  he  drew  the  old  man's 
head  still  closer  to  him  until  his  ear  was  within  a  few  inches 
of  his  mouth,  "  I  love  to  play  the  violin  better  than  I  love 
aLything  in  the  world,  and  I've  got  one  of  the  best  ones, 
you  ever  heard,  out  there  in  the  bow  of  the  boat." 

"  Heavens  and  'arth,  Lad  !  "  ejaculated  the  Trapper,  "  did 
ye  say  ye  could  play  the  fiddle,  and  that  ye  had  a  good  one 
out  there  in  the  boat  ?    Lord-a-massy  !  how  the  young  folks 


302  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

will  hop.  Scoot  out  there  and  git  it,  boy,  and  Henry  and 
me  will  let  the  folks  know  what  ye've  got  and  what  ye  can 
do." 

The  Lad  fairly  flashed  out  of  the  room.  He  was  gone  io 
an  instant ;  and  in  a  few  minutes  he  had  returned,  beariug 
in  his  hands  a  bundle  which  he  carried  as  carefully  as  a 
mother  would  carry  her  babe ;  but  brief  as  had  been  his 
absence  it  had  allowed  sufficient  time  for  Herbert  to  com- 
municate with  the  master  of  ceremonies  and  for  him  to  an- 
nounce to  the  company  present  that  the  great  lack  of  the 
occasion  had  fortunately  and  unexpectedly  been  supplied ; 
for  the  young  man  who  was  with  Mr.  Herbert  and  John  Nor- 
ton not  only  knew  how  to  play  the  violin  but  actually  had 
one  in  his  boat  and  had  just  gone  to  get  it,  and  would  be 
back  in  a  moment.  The  announcement  was  received  with 
applause.  White  hands  clapped,  and  a  hundred  ejaculations 
of  wonderment  sounded  forth  the  surprise  and  pleasure  of 
the  eager  throng.  And  when  the  Lad  came  stealing  in, 
bearing  his  precious  burden,  he  was  received  with  a  posi- 
tive ovation. 

It  was  amusing  to  see  the  change  which  had  come  over 
the  looks  and  actions  of  the  company  at  the  mention  and 
appearance  of  the  violin.  The  faces  that  had  shown  indif- 
ference and  the  look  of  languid  weariness  freshened  and 
became  tense  in  all  their  lines ;  and  on  their  heads  again 
animation  sat  crowned.  Those  who  were  seated  jumped  to 
their  feet.  The  conversationalists  broke  their  circle  and 
swung  suddenly  into  line.  Eyes  sparkled.  Little  happy 
screams  and  miniature  war-whoops  from  the   boisterous 


'      THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  303 

youngsters  rang  through  the  parlor.  In  eye,  and  look,  and 
voice,  the  popular  tribute  spoke  in  honor  of  the  popular 
instrument,  —  an  instrument  whose  strings  can  sound  al- 
most every  passion  forth :  The  quip  and  quirk  of  merri- 
ment, the  mourner's  wail,  the  measured  praise  of  solemn 
psalms,  the  lively  beat  of  joy,  the  subtle  charm  of  indolent 
moods,  and  the  sweet  ecstasy  of  youthful  pleasure,  when 
with  flying  feet  and  in  the  abandon  of  delight  she  swings, 
circles,  and  floats  through  the  measures  of  the  voluptuous 
waltz. 

In  one  corner  of  the  parlor  there  was  a  raised  platform, 
from  which  charades  and  private  theatricals  had  been  acted 
on  some  previous  evening,  and  to  this  the  Lad  was  escorted; 
and  strange  to  say  his  awkwardness  had  departed  from 
him.  His  form  was  straight.  His  head  raised*  His  shamb- 
ling gait  steadied  itself  with  firmer  confidence.  His  long 
arms  sought  no  longer  feebly  to  hide  themselves,  but  held 
the  package  that  he  carried  in  fond  authority  of  gesture,  as 
a  proud  mother,  whose  pride  had  banished  bashfulness, 
might  carry  a  beautiful  child  —  a  child  that  was  her  own. 
So  the  Lad  went  towards  the  raised  dais,  and  seating  him- 
self in  the  chair,  proceed  with  deliberate  tenderness  to  un- 
cover the  instrument. 

An  old,  dark-looking  one  it  was.  The  gloom  of  centuries 
darkened  it.  Their  dusk  had  penetrated  the  very  fibres  of 
the  wood.  Its  look  suggested  ancient  times  j  far  climes ; 
and  hands  long  mouldering  in  dust.  It  was  an  instrument 
to  quicken  curiosity  and  elicit  mental  interrogation.  What 
was  its  story  ?    Where  was  it  made  ?  By  whom,  and  when  ? 


304  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

The  Lad  did  not  know.  It  was  his  mother's  gift,  he  said 
And  an  old  sea-captain  had  given  it  to  his  mother.  The  old 
sea-captain  had  found  it  on  a  wreck  in  the  far-off  Indian 
Ocean.  He  found  it  in  a  trunk  —  a  great  sea  chest  made  of 
scented  wood  and  banded  with  brazen  ribs.  And  in  the 
chest,  with  it,  it  was  rumored  were  silks,  and  costly  fabrics, 
and  gold  and  eastern  gems,  —  gems  that  never  had  been 
cut ;  but  lay  in  all  their  barbaric  beauty,  dull  and  swarth  as 
Cleopatra's  face.  Thus  the  violin  had  been  found  on  the  far 
seas  —  at  the  end  of  the  world,  as  it  were,  and  in  compan- 
ionship of  gems  and  fabrics  rich  and  rare;  and  in  a  chest 
whose  mouth  breathed  odors.    This  was  all  the  Lad  knew. 

"  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  "  the  Lad  says  the  fiddle 
is  so  old  that  no  one  knows  how  old  it  is ;  and  I  conceit  the 
boy  speaks  the  truth.  It  sartinly  looks  as  old  as  a  squaw 
whose  teeth  has  dropped  out  and  whose  eyes  are  half  shet, 
and  her  face  the  color  of  tanned  buckskin.  I  tell  ye,  Henry, 
I  believe  it  will  bust  if  the  Lad  draws  the  bow  with  any  'ar- 
nestness  across  it,  for  there  never  was  a  glue  made  that 
would  hold  wood  together  for  a  thousand  year.  And  if  that 
fiddle  isn't  a  thousand  year  old,  then  John  Norton  is  no 
jedge  of  appearances ;  and  can't  count  the  prongs  on  the 
horns  of  a  buck." 

At  this  instant  the  Lad  dropped  the  bow  on  to  the  strings. 
Strong  and  round,  mellow  and  sweet,  the  note  swelled  forth; 
starting  with  the  least  filament  of  sound,  it  wove  itself  into 
a  compact  chord  of  sonorous  resonance ;  filled  the  great 
parlors;  passed  through  the  doorway  into  the  receptive 
stillness  outside;  charged  it  with  throbbings  —  thus  held 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  305 

the  air  a  moment ;  reigned  in  it  —  then,  called  its  powers 
back  to  itself;  drew  in  its  vibrating  tones;  checked  its  un- 
dulating force ;  and  leaving  the  air  by  easy  retirement  came 
back  like  a  bird  to  its  nest  and  died  away  within  the  re- 
cesses of  the  dark,  melodious  shell  from  whence  it  started. 

When  the  bow  first  began  its  course  across  the  strings 
the  Old  Trapper's  eyes  were  on  it ;  and  as  the  note  grew 
and  swelled  he  seemed  to  grow  with  it.  His  great  fingers 
shut  into  their  palms  as  if  an  unseen  power  were  pulling  at 
the  cords.  His  breast  heaved  full.  His  mouth  actually 
opened.  It  was  as  if  the  rising,  swelling,  pulsating  sounds 
lifted  him  from  off  the  floor  on  which  he  stood ;  and  when 
the  magnificent  note  ebbed  and  finally  died  away  within  the 
violin,  not  only  he,  but  all  the  company  stood  breathless : 
charmed,  surprised,  astonished  into  silence  at  the  wondrous 
strain  they  had  heard. 

The  Old  Trapper  was  the  first  to  move.  He  brought  his 
brawny  hand  down  heavily  on  to  Herbert's  shoulder  and 
with  a  face  .actually  on  fire  with  the  fervor  stirred  within 
him,  exclaimed :  — 

"  Lord-a-massy !  Henry,  did  ye  ever  hear  a  noise  like 
that  ?  I  say,  boy,  did  ye  ever  hear  a  noise  like  that?  Where 
on  'arth  did  it  all  come  from  ?  Why,  boy,  'twas  as  long  and 
as  solemn  as  a  funeral,  as  arnest  as  the  cry  of  a  panther ; 
and  roared  like  the  nest  of  hornets  when  ye  poke  'em  up 
with  a  stick.  If  that's  a  fiddle  I  wonder  what  the  other 
things  be  that  I  have  heerd  the  half-breeds  and  the  French- 
ers  play  in  the  clearin's." 

Well  might  the  Old  Trapper  be  astonished.    The  violin  of 


306  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

unknown  age  and  make  was  one  among  ten  thousand.  It 
was  a  concert  to  hear  the  Lad  tune  it ;  which  he  did  with  a 
bold  and  skillful  touch,  and  the  exactness  of  an  ear  which 
nature  had  made  exquisitely  true  to  time  and  chord.  His 
bashfulness  was  gone.  His  timidity  had  departed.  His 
awkwardness,  even,  went  out  of  body  and  arm  and  fingers, 
with  the  initial  note.  His  soul  had  found  its  life  with  his 
mother's  gift ;  and  he  who  was  so  weak  and  hesitating  in 
ordinary  moments,  found  courage  and  strength,  and  the 
dignity  of  a  master,  when  he  touched  the  strings.  At  last 
the  instrument  was  ready.  And  with  a  flourish  bold  and 
free  he  struck  into  the  measures  of  a  waltz  that  filled  the 
parlor  with  a  circling  noise,  and  made  the  air  throb  and 
beat  —  swing  and  swell,  as  if  it  were  liquid,  and  unseen 
hands  were  moving  it  with  measured  undulations. 

There  was  no  resisting  an  influence  so  sweet,  subtle,  and 
pervasive,  as  flowed  from  that  easy-going  bow,  as  it  came 
and  went  over  the  resounding  strings.  Couple  after  couple  ' 
swung  off  into  the  open  space  until  the  entire  company 
were  swinging  and  floating  through  the  dreamy  and  be- 
witching measures.  The  god  of  music  was  actually  in  the 
room,  and  his  strong,  passionate  touch  was  on  the  souls  of 
those  who  were  floated  hither  and  thither  as  if  blown  by 
his  invisible  breath.  The  music  actually  took  possession  of 
the  dancers.  It  banished  the  mortal  heaviness  from  their 
frames,  and  made  them  buoyant  so  that  their  feet  scarce 
touched  the  floor.  Up  and  down  and  across,  from  side  to 
side  and  end  to  end  they  whirled  and  floated.  They  moved 
as  if  a  power  which  took  the  place  of  wings  was  in  them. 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  307 

They  did  not  seem  to  know  that  they  were  dancing.  They 
did  not  dance ;  they  floated ;  flowing  like  a  current  moved 
by  easy  undulations.  Their  hands  were  clasped.  Their 
faces  nearly  touched.  Their  eyes  were  closed  or  glowing. 
And  still  the  long  bow  came  and  went,  and  still  the  music 
rose  and  sank,  and  swelled  and  ebbed  as  easy  waves  ad- 
vance, retreat  and  flood  again,  breaking  in  white  and  lazy 
murmurs  at  twilight  on  the  dusky  beach. 

Herbert  stood  still  j  but  his  eyes  were  lifted,  the  gaze  in 
them  was  far  away,  and  one  foot  beat  the  measure.  Be- 
side him  stood  the  Trapper.  His  arms  were  crossed ;  his 
eyes  were  on  the  bow  that  the  Lad  was  drawing,  and  his 
body  swayed,  lifted  and  sank  in  perfect  harmony  with  the 
motions  and  the  accompanying  sound,  with  a  grace  which 
nature  only  reaches  when  the  will  is  utterly  surrendered  to 
a  power  that  has  charmed  the  stiffness  and  tension  out  of 
the  frame  and  made  it  yielding  and  responsive. 

At  last  the  music  stopped ;  and  with  it  stopped  each 
form.  Each  foot  was  arrested  at  the  point  to  which  the 
sound  had  carried  it  when  it  paused.  Each  couple  stood  in 
perfect  pose.  The  motive  power  which  moved  them  was 
withdrawn,  and  the  limbs  stood  motionless  as  if  the  soul 
that  gave  them  animation  had  retired.  They  had  been  lifted 
to  another  world  —  a  world  of  impulse  and  movement  more 
airy  and  spirit-like  than  the  gross  earth,  —  and  it  took  a 
oment  for  them  to  struggle  back  to  ordinary  life.  But  in 
a  moment  thought  recalled  them  to  themselves,  and  they 
realized  the  mastery  of  the  power  that  had  held  them  at  its 
will,  and  the  applause  broke  out  in  showers  of  happy  tu- 


308  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

mult.  They  crowded  around  the  Lad  —  strong  men  and 
beautiful  women,  —  gazing  at  him  in  wonder ;  then  broke 
up  into  knots,  talking  and  marveling.  In  the  Old  Trapper's 
face,  as  he  gazed  at  the  Lad,  a  strange  look  came,  —  the 
look  of  a  man  to  whose  soul  has  come  a  revelation  so  pure 
and  sweet  and  clear  that  he  is  unable  at  first  to  compass  it 
with  his  understanding.  He  came  close  to  the  Lad,  and  sit- 
ting down  on  the  edge  of  the  platform,  put  his  hand  on  the 
knee  of  the  youth,  and  said :  — 

"  I  have  heerd  most  of  the  sweet  and  terrible  noises  that 
natur'  makes,  boy  j  I  have  heerd  the  thunder  among  the 
hills,  when  the  Lord  was  knockin'  agin  the  'arth  until  it 
jarred  ;  and  I  have  heerd  the  wind  in  the  pines  and  the 
waves  on  the  beaches  when  the  darkness  of  night  was  on 
the  woods,  and  Natur'  was  singin'  her  evenin'  psalm ;  and 
there  be  no  bird  or  beast  the  Lord  has  made  whose  cry,  be 
it  lively  or  solemn,  I  have  not  heerd ;  and  I  have  said  that 
man  had  never  made  an  insterment  that  could  make  so 
sweet  a  noise  as  Natur'  makes  when  the  Sperit  of  the  uni- 
varse  speaks  through  the  stillness:  but  ye  have  made 
sounds  to-night,  Lad,  sweeter  than  my  ears  have  ever  heerd 
on  hill  or  lake-shore,  at  noon  or  in  the  night  season,  and  I 
sartinly  believe  that  the  Sperit  of  the  Lord  has  been  with 
ye,  boy,  and  gi'n  ye  the  power  to  bring  out  sech  music  as 
the  Book  says  the  angels  make  in  their  happiness  in  the 
world  above.  I  trust  ye  are  grateful,  Lad,  for  the  gift  the 
Lord  has  gi'n  ye ;  for,  though  yer  tongue  knows  leetle  of 
speech,  yit  yer  fingers  can  bring  sech  sounds  out  of  that 
fiddle  as  a  man  might  wish  to  have  in  his  ears  when  his 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  309 

body  lies  in  bis  cabin,  and  bis  sperit  is  standiu'  on  the  edge 
of  the  Great  Clearin'.  Yis,  Lad,  ye  must  sartinly  play  for 
me  when  my  eyes  grow  dim,  and  my  feet  strike  tbe  trail 
tbat  no  man  strikes  but  once,  nor  travels  botb  ways." 

Ab  tbis  point  tbe  announcement  of  supper  was  made;  and 
tbe  company  streamed  towards  tbe  tables.  The  repast  was 
of  that  bounteous  character  customary  to  the  houses  located 
in  the  woods,  in  which  the  hearty  provisions  of  the  forest 
were  brought  into  conjunction  with  and  reinforced  by  the 
more  light  and  fanciful  cuisine  of  the  cities.  Among  the 
substantia]  s  fish  and  venison  predominated.  There  was 
venison  roast  and  venison  spitted  and  venison  broiled,  ven- 
ison steak  and  venison  pie.  Trout  broiled,  and  baked,  and 
boiled ;  pancakes  and  rolls ;  ices  and  cream ;  pies  and  pud- 
dings ;  pickles  and  sauces  of  every  conceivable  character 
and  make  j  ducks  and  partridges ;  coffee  and  tea  whose  na- 
ture, we  regret  to  say,  was  discernible  only  to  the  eye  of 
faith.  In  the  midst  of  this  abundance  the  Old  Trapper  was 
entirely  at  home.  He  ate  with  the  relish  and  heartiness  of 
a  man  whose  appetite  was  of  the  highest  order  j  and  whose 
courage  mounted  to  the  occasion. 

"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  as  he  transferred  a 
duck  to  his  plate,  and  proceeded  to  carve  it  with  the  apt- 
ness of  one  who  had  practical  knowledge  of  its  anatomy, 
"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,  the  birds  are  gittin'  fat  j  and  I  sartinly 
hope  the  flight  this  Fall  will  be  a  good  'un.  Don't  be  bash- 
ful, Lad,  in  yer  eatin',"  he  continued,  as  he  transferred  half 
of  his  bird  to  his  companion's  plate,  "  ye  haven't  got  the 
size  of  some  about  the  waist,  but  yer  length  is  in  yer  favor 


310  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  if  ye  will  only  straighten  up;  and  Henry  don't  give  out, 
there'll  be  leetle  left  on  this  eend  of  the  table  when  we  have 
satisfied  our  hunger.  I  don't  know  when  the  cravin'  of  na- 
tur'  has  been  stronger  within  me  than  it  is  this  minit ;  and 
if  nothin'  happens,  and  ye  stand  by  me,  the  Saranacers  will 
remember  our  visit  for  days  arter  we  are  gone.  It  isn't 
often  that  I  feed  in  the  settlements,  or  get  a  taste  of  their 
cookin',  but  the  man  who  basted  these  birds  knowed  what 
he  was  doin',  and  the  fire  has  given  them  jest  the  right 
tech ;  for  the  morsels  actally  melt  in  yer  mouth." 

The  Trapper's  feelings  were  evidently  not  peculiar  to  him- 
self. For  the  spirit  of  feasting  was  abroad,  and  the  eat- 
ing was  such  as  would  astonish  the  dwellers  in  cities.  Wit 
flashed  across  the  table  in  answer  to  wit.  Mirth  rippled 
from  end  to  end  of  the  room.  Laughter  roared  and  rol- 
licked adown  the  hall.    Jokes  were  cracked.    Fun  exploded. 

Plates  rattled.    Cups  and  glasses  touched  and  rang.    Even 

l 
the  waiters  as  they  came  and  went  in  their  happy  service 

caught  the  infection  of  the  surrounding  happiness  and  their 

laughter  mingled  with  that  of  the  guests. 

The  great  pine  branches  and  the  evergreen  nailed  against 

the  corner  posts  and  wreathed  into  festoons  along  the  walls 

shook  and  trembled  in  the  uproar  as  to  the  passage  of  winds 

along  their  native  hills.    And  the  huge  bucks'  heads,  whose 

antlers  were  tied  with  rosettes  and  streaming  ribbons,  lost 

the  staring  look  of  their  great  artificial  eyes  and  seemed  as 

they  looked  out  through  the  interlacing  boughs  of  cedar  and 

balsam  as  if  life  had  returned  to  them,  and  they  once  more 

were  animate. 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  311 

In  about  an  hour  the  company  streamed  back  into  the 
parlor,  with  a  mood  even  livelier  than  that  which  had  char- 
acterized the  early  hours  of  the  occasion.  Their  minds 
were  in  the  state  of  highest  action,  and  their  bodies  needed 
but  the  opportunity  for  rapid  motion.  Even  the  Lad  had 
caught  the  infection  of  the  surrounding  liveliness,  for  his 
eyes  and  face  glowed  with  the  light  of  quickened  anima- 
tion. 

"  Have  ye  got  any  jigs  in  that  fiddle,  Lad,"  said  the  Trap- 
per, "  can  ye  twist  anything  out  of  yer  instrument  that  will 
set  the  feet  travelin'  ?  It  seems  to  me  that  the  young  folks 
here  want  shakin  up  a  leetle ;  and  a  leetle  of  the  old-fash- 
ioned dancin'  will  help  'em  settle  the  victuals.  Can  ye  liven 
up  Lad,  and  give  'em  a  tune  that  will  set  'em  whirlin'. 

The  only  reply  of  the  .Lad  was  a  motion  of  the  bow  j  but 
the  motion  was  effective ;  for  it  sent  a  torrent  of  notes  into 
the  air,  which  thrilled  through  the  body  and  tingled  along 
the  nerves  like  an  electric  shock.  The  Old  Trapper  fairly 
bounded  into  the  air ;  and  when  he  struck  the  floor  his  feet 
were  flying.  Nor  was  he  alone ;  the  jig  had  started  a  dozen 
on  the  instant ;  and  the  floor  rattled  and  rang  with  the  tap 
of  toe  and  heel. 

"  Henry,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  "  hold  on  to  me  or  I  shall 
sartinly  make  a  fool  of  myself.  The  Lad  is  ticklin'  me  from 
head  to  foot,  and  my  toes  are  snappin'  inside  of  the  mocca- 
sins. Lord,  who'd  a  thought  that  the  blood  in  the  veins  of 
a  man  whose  head  is  whitenin'  could  be  sot  leapin'  as  mine 
is  doin'  at  this  minit'  by  the  scrapin'  of  a  fiddle." 

The  Lad  was  a  picture  to  see.    His  bow  flew  like  light- 


312  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

ning.  His  long  fingers  drummed  and  slid  along  the  strings 
of  the  violin  with  bewildering  swiftness.  The  little  instru- 
ment jetted  and  effervesced  its  melody.  The  continuous 
and  resounding  noise  poured  out  of  it  in  tuneful  bubbles. 
The  air  was  full  of  tinkling  fragments  of  sound.  The  Lad's 
body  swayed  to  and  fro.  His  face  glowed.  His  eyes  flashed. 
The  sweat  stood  in  drops  on  his  forehead,  but  still  the  bow 
snapped  and  crinkled,  and  the  instrument  continued  to  burst 
in  musical  explosion,  while  the  floor  shook ;  the  windows 
rattled;  the  lamps  flared  and  fluttered,  as  the  dancers  chased 
the  music  on. 

"  Heavens  and  arth ! "  said  the  Trapper.  "  I  can't  stand 
this,"  and  breaking  from  the  hold  that  Herbert  had  on  him 
he  whirled  himself  out  to  the  center  of  the  floor,  and  with 
his  face  aflame  with  excitement,  and  his  white  hair  flying 
abroad,  he  led  the  jig  men  off  with  the  lightness  of  foot 
and  rapidity  of  stroke  that  forced  the  music  by  half  a  beat. 
The  effect  was  electric.  The  room  burst  with  applause,  and 
the  Lad  fetched  a  stroke  that  seemed  to  rip  the  violin  asun- 
der. It  was  now  a  race  between  the  violin  and  the  dancers. 
One  after  another  fell  out  of  the  circle  as  the  moments 
passed,  until  the  Trapper  was  left  alone  and  was  cutting  it 
down  in  a  fashion  that  both  astonished  and  convulsed  the 
company.  More  than  one  of  the  spectators  went  on  to  the 
floor  in  paroxysms  of  laughter.  Herbert,  bent  over  with  j 
his  hands  on  his  knees,  was  watchiug  the  Trapper  with 
mouth  stretched  to  its  utmost,  and  streaming  eyes.  The 
gambler  was  jumping  up  and  down,  utterly  beside  himself, 
calling  for  "odds." 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  313 

It  is  impossible  to  say  which  would  have  triumphed,  had 
not  an  accident  decided  the  contest  and  brought  the  jig  to 
an  abrupt  termination.  For  even  while  the  Lad  was  in  the 
midst  of  the  swiftest  execution,  the  hind  legs  of  the  chair 
in  which  he  was  sitting  were  whipped  from  their  fastenings, 
his  heels  went  into  the  air,  and  he  turned  half  a  somersault 
backward,  and  the  music  stopped  with  a  snap. 

It  was  minutes  before  a  word  could  be  heard.  Eoars  and 
irieks,  and  screams  of  irrepressible  and  uncontrolable 
lerriment  shook  the  house  from  foundation  to  garret.  The 
Lad  picked  himself  up,  and  for  the  first  time  since  they  met 
Herbert  saw  his  placid  countenance  wrinkled  and  seamed 
with  the  contortions  of  uproarous  mirth.  The  sluggishness 
of  his  temperament  for  once  was  thoroughly  agitated,  and 
the  manhood  which  never  before  had  come  to  the  surface 
found  in  hilarity  a  visible  and  adequate  expression.  The 
Trapper  had  spun  to  his  side  and  the  two  had  joined  their 
hands,  and  looking  into  each  other's  faces  were  laughing 
with  a  boisterousness  that  fairly  shook  their  frames  and  ex- 
ploded in  resounding  peals. 

Gradually  the  uproar  subsided,  and  the  company  settled 
by  easy  transition  to  a  quieter  mood.  The  hours  of  the 
night  were  passing,  and  the  moment  drawing  nigh  when 
those  who  had  mingled  their  merriment  must  part.  The 
Old  Trapper  had  regained  his  gravity  and  his  countenance 
had  settled  to  its  customary  repose.  It  seemed  the  general 
wish  that  the  Lad  should  favor  them  with  a  farewell  piece, 
and,  in  compliance  with  the  request  of  many,  the  old  man 
turned  to  him  and  said :  — 


314  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  The  hours  be  drawing  on,  Lad,  and  it's  reasonable  that 
we  should  break  up ;  but  afore  we  go  the  folks  wish  to  hear 
ye  play  a  quiet  sort  of  a  piece  that  may  be  cheerful  and 
pleasant-like  for  them  to  remember  ye  by  when  we  be  gone. 
So  Lad  if  ye  have  got  anything  in  yer  head  that's  soft  and 
teching,  somethin'  that  will  sort  o'  stay  in  the  heart  as  the 
seasons  come  and  go,  I  sartinly  hope  ye  will  play  it  for  them. 
And  as  ye  say  ye  was  born  by  the  sea,  and  as  ye  say  the  in- 
sterment  ye  hold  in  yer  hand  was  gi'n  ye  by  yer  mother, 
it  may  be  ye  can  play  us  something  out  of  yer  memory  that 
shall  tell  us  of  her  goodness  to  ye.  Somethin',  I  mean,  that 
shall  tell  us  of  the  shore  where  ye  was  born  and  the  love 
that  ye  had  afore  ye  laid  her  to  rest  and  came  to  the  woods. 
Can  ye  play  us  somethin'  like  that,  Lad  ? " 

"  I  can  play  you  anything  that  has  mother  in  it,"  said  he, 
and  a  wistful,  yearning,  hungry  look  came  into  his  eyes,  and 
the  edges  of  his  simple  lips  quivered. 

The  company  seated  themselves,  and  the  boy  drew  his 
bow  across  the  instrument.  The  brush  of  a  painter  could 
not  have  made  the  picture  more  perfect,  than  the  vision 
the  Lad  brought  forth  as  the  bow  played  on  the  strings. 
The  picture  of  a  sea,  sunlighted  and  level,  and  stretching 
far  out ;  the  picture  of  a  curved  shore  :  the  shore  of  a  quiet 
bay,  rimmed  with  its  beach  of  shining  sand  and  noisy  with 
the  gurgle  and  splash  of  lapsing  waves ;  the  picture  of  a 
home  quiet  and  orderly,  and  filled  with  the  tenderness  of  a 
gentle  spirit ;  and  then  a  heavier  chord  told  of  the  coming 
of  a  darker  hour  when  the  mother  lay  dying.  The  violin 
fairly  sobbed  and  groaned  and  wailed,  as  if  the  spirit  ot 


THE  MAN  THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  315 

inconsolable  grief  were  tugging  heavily  at  the  strings. 
Anon,  a  bell  tolled  solemnly  out  of  it,  and  its  heavy  knell 
clanged  through  the  room.  And  then  the  music  rested  for 
a  minute,  and  in  the  silence  a  grave  came  into  sight  as 
plainly  as  if  the  eyes  of  all  were  actually  looking  at  its  open 
mouth.  Again  the  music  sounded,  and  the  sods,  one  after 
another,  fell  on  the  coffin  dull  and  heavy,  changing  to  a 
smothered  sound  as  the  grave  filled.  Once  more  it  paused, 
and  then  a  clear,  sweet  strain  arose,  sad,  but  pure,  and  fine, 
and  hopeful,  as  voice  of  angels  could  have  sung  it,  trustful 
and  resigned.  The  bow  stopped  again ;  for  a  moment  the 
violin  was  silent.  And  then  the  Lad  lifted  his  face,  and,  lay- 
ing the  bow  softly  upon  the  strings,  he  began  to  play  what 
all  instinctively  felt  was  a  hymn  to  the  spirit  of  his  mother. 
Slowly,  softly,  sweetly  as  the  strains  which  the  dying  some- 
times hear,  the  pure,  clear,  smooth  notes,  stole  out  into  the 
hushed  air.  It  was  playing,  not  such  as  mortal  plays  to 
mortal,  but  such  as  spirit  might  play  to  spirit,  and  soul  to 
soul,  across  the  street  of  heaven.  The  Lad  still  used  an 
earthly  instrument  and  touched  its  strings  with  mortal  fin- 
gers ;  but  never,  while  they  live,  will  those  who  heard  that 
hymn  believe  that  anything  less  than  the  spirit  of  the  boy ; 
—  as  it  shall  be  in  mood  when,  in  the  spirit  world,  he  first 
beholds  his  angel  mother,  —  drew  from  the  instrument  the 
notes  that  filled  that  room  with  their  divine  sweetness.  In- 
deed, the  Lad  did  not  act  as  if  lie  were  conscious  of  his 
body,  or  of  bodily  presences  around  him.  His  face  was 
lifted,  and  his  eyes,  from  which  the  tears  were  streaming, 
were  gazing  upward,  not  as  if  into  vacancy,  but  as  if  they 


316  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

saw  the  bright  being  that  had  passed  within  the  vail,  but. 
which  now,  for  a  moment,  stood  in  all  the  beauty  of  her 
transfiguration  before  them.  For  a  smile  was  on  the  boy's 
lips,  even  while  the  tears  were  rolling  down  his  cheeks ; 
and  when,  at  last,  the  arm  suspended  its  motion ;  when  the 
sweet  notes  ceased  to  sound,  and  the  last  chord  had  died 
away,  the  Lad  still  kept  his  uplifted  posture  and  his  features 
held  the  same  rapt  expression. 

The  company  sat  motionless,  their  gaze  fastened  on  the 
Lad.  Not  an  eye  was  without  its  tear.  The  cheeks  of  the 
Old  Trapper  were  wet ;  and  Herbert,  touched  by  some  mem- 
ory, or  overcome  by  the  pathos  of  the  music,  was  actually 
sobbing.  The  old  man,  with  a  tread  as  light  as  a  moccasined 
foot  could  make,  stepped  softly  to  the  side  of  the  Lad  and 
taking  him  by  the  arm,  while  the  company  rose  as  one  man, 
he  motioned  to  Henry  with  his  hand,  and  then,  without  a 
word,  the  Trapper,  and  Herbert,  and  "  The  Man  Who  Didn't 
Know  Much,"  passed  out  of  the  room,  and  taking  boat, 
shoved  off  and  glided  from  sight  in  the  blue  darkness  of  the 
overhanging  night,  amid  whose  eastern  gloom  the  great, 
luminous  mellow-hearted  stars  of  the  morning  were  already 
aflame. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  PARTING. 

"Once  more  ye  woods,  adieu."—  Virgil. 

An  island  :  small  in  size,  lifted  but  a  few  feet  above  the 
water,  and  wooded  heavily  with  pines.  A  camp-fire  near 
the  centre,  whose  flames  were  fed  by  logs  of  beech  and 
bircb  intermixed  with  resinous  woods.  Underneath  the  logs, 
a  great  bed  of  coals  and  brands  vividly  on  fire  and  hot  as  the 
mouth  of  a  furnace.  Above,  flames  sent  illuminations  every- 
where ;  bringing  the  trunks  of  the  great  trees  out  in  bold  re- 
lief and  brightening  the  gloomy  foliage  so  that  the  withered 
cones  stood  out  to  view.  A  current  of  cool  air ;  the  breath 
of  an  ice-king  which  had  been  blown  a  thousand  leagues, 
nor  lost  its  chill.  Between  it  and  the  fire  was  mutual 
hate;  for  when  it  blew  a  stronger  puff  the  flame  in 
hot  resentment  flared  hoarsely  up  and  roared  wrathfully. 
Amid  the  rocks  that  lined  the  shores  the  waves  washed 
noisily.  Above  the  pines  a  great  gloomy  dome,  whose  vault 
was  traversed  by  a  broad  belt  of  snowy  appearance,  and 
studded  with  millions  of  dazzling  stars. '  In  front  of  the 
coals  two  giant  dogs  lay  curled,  back  to  back,  basking  in 
the  heat.  Farther  away,  their  faces  lighted  by  the  fire, 
three  men  sat  or  reclined  in  easy  posture,  their  backs  sup- 
ported by  a  great  log.    This  was  the  scene. 


318  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

"I'm  sorry,  Henry,  that  ye  must  leave  us  to-morrer/' 
said  the  Trapper,  breaking  the  long  silence  that  had  pre- 
ceded the  remark,  "  but  ye  say  ye  must  go,  and  I  suppose 
we  must  give  ye  up.  There  be  many  in  the  settlements,  I 
dare  say,  that  love  ye  and  long  to  see  ye ;  and  it's  but  right 
for  ye  to  go.  But  ye  won't  quite  forgit  us,  boy,  when  ye're 
livin'  iu  the  great  city,  and  the  han'some  and  the  rich  be 
round  ye?" 

"I  shall  never  forget  you,  John  Norton,  nor  the  Lad 
either,"  responded  the  young  man  ;  "  I  owe  my  life  to  both 
of  you,  and  while  I  live  I  shall  remember  it.  My  life  was 
saved  here  in  the  woods,  and  here  would  I  live  were  I  not 
bound  to  civilization  by  ties  I  cannot  in  conscience  break. 
But  I  mean  to  have  you  both  visit  me  this  winter.  Do  you 
know  it  is  only  two  days'  travel  from  this  island  to  my  city 
home  ?  " 

"  It  isn't  distance,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper,  after  a  mo- 
ment's pause,  "  that  makes  a  visit  likely  or  onlikely  atween 
friends.  I  footed  it  from  the  shore  of  the  Horicon  to  the 
shore  of  Ontario  once,  jest  .to  call  on  a  comrade  I  heerd  was 
campin'  on  the  Big  Water.  No,  it  sartinly  isn't  distance, 
Henry,  but  difference  in  ways  of  livinJ  that  keeps  friends 
apart.  Lord  bless  ye,  boy,  if  miles  was  all  that  lay  atween 
us,  me  and  the  Lad,  and  the  pups  there,  could  make  ye  a 
visit  eenamost  any  time  arter  the  snow  has  crusted ;  for  the 
trappin'  is  onsartin  then,  and  the  snow-shoes  be  famous 
things  to  travel  on.  But  ye  see  ye  live  one  way  and  we 
another;  and  though  ye  be  a  nateral  woodsman,  and  take 
to  our  way  of  living  as  easily  as  a  young  otter  takes  to  the 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  319 

crick,  yit  I  conceit  it  be  different  with  me  in  the  settle- 
ments, and  that  yer  way  of  livin'  wouldn't  suit  an  old  man 
whose  days  have  been  passed  in  the  woods,  and  whose  ears 
hate  the  noise  of  the  clearin's." 

f  I  don't  know  about  that,  John  Norton,"  replied  the 
young  man,  "  you  should  live  as  you  wished  to  with  me, 
and  I  would  do  everything  I  could  to  make  your  stay  pleas- 
ant." 

"Aye,  aye,  Henry,"  responded  the  Trapper;  "I  under- 
stand the  goodness  of  yer  heart  and  the  openness  of  yer 
hand ;  and  if  anythiug  could  make  me  contented  with  the 
ways  of  the  settlements  ye  sartinly  could  do  it.  But  natur' 
and  habits  be  stronger  than  wishes ;  and  my  natur,  and  hab- 
its be  agin  it.  Why,  Henry,  I  should  smother  in  the  city ; 
for  I've  heerd  that  the  cabins  be  made  of  brick  and  stun, 
and  stand  so  nigh  together  that  they  actally  tech ;  and  that 
the  smoke  of  the  fires  be  so  thick  that  ye  can't  tell  when 
the  sun  rises  or  sets ;  and  that  the  carries  from  p'int  to  p'int 
be  covered  with  folks ;  and  that  the  trails  be  thicker  with 
people  than  the  trunk  of  a  bee-tree  when  the  bees  be 
swarmin'.    Is  it  raally  so,  boy  ? " 

"  Yes,  the  houses  do  stand  side  by  side,"  replied  Herbert, 
"  and  the  streets  are  full  of  people  from  morning  till  late  at 
night,  and  the  noise  and  jar  of  cars  and  carts  are  con- 
tinuous." 

"That's  it,"  interrupted  the  Trapper,  "that's  it.  The 
noises  would  eenamost  kill  me ;  for  beyend  the  crack  of  a 
rifle,  or  the  sound  of  an  axe  cuttin'  wood  for  the  camp,  my 
ears  hate  noises;  onless  it  be  sech  as  natur'  makes.    For 


320  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

when  the  ears  be  full  of  noise  the  eyes  can't  obsarve,  noi 
the  heart  meditate  on  the  things  around.  It  isn't  what 
folks  tells  us  that  makes  us  knowin'  ;  but  it's  what  we  find 
out  for  ourselves.  It's  the  blaze  on  the  tree  that  the 
hunter  sarches  for  and  finds  with  his  own  eyes,  that  he 
never  forgits ;  and  I  have  never  seed  a  city  man  yit  that 
knowed  anything,  of  his  own  self;  for  his  edication  was 
what  he  had  been  larnt  by  others,  or  had  read  in  books. 
And  ye  know  Henry,  that  the  raal  wisdom  of  Natur'  has 
never  been  printed  in  books  yit." 

"  I  think  you  are  right  there,  John  Norton,"  returned  the 
young  man,  "  the  best  wisdom  has  never  been  printed  ;  for 
scholars,  as  a  class,  never  study  for  the  new,  but  for  the 
old ;  and  the  present  generation  only  recites  the  same  les- 
sons that  the  fathers  had  recited." 

"  Yis  Henry,  that's  it ;  and  queer  enough  it  seems  to  a 
man  of  the  woods.  Lord  !  I  guided  a  man  a  year  or  two 
ago  that  knowed  everything  that  books  could  tell  a  mortal. 
He  was  as  full  of  Aggers  and  facts  as  a  hedgehog  is  of  quills. 
And  if  ye  poked  him  up  a  leetle  with  a  question  or  two 
he'd  shed  'em  faster  than  ye  could  pick  'em  up.  But  when 
ye  got  him  right  down  to  it  he  didn't  know  nothin'  Henry. 
He  couldn't  tell  the  p'ints  of  the  compass  on  a  cloudy  day  ; 
nor  keep  the  trail  on  a  carry;  nor  tell  a  doe's  track  from  a 
buck's.  He  didn't  even  know  how  to  dress  out  his  venison 
nor  cook  a  pancake.  And  I  do  believe,  the  creetur'  would 
have  starved  to  death  when  the  Lord  had  made  plenty 
around  him.  And  it  made  me  thankful  for  my  gifts  and 
my  larnin'  as  I  obsarved  his  ignorance." 


THE   MAN  THAT   DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  321 

u  And  yet,"  replied  Herbert,  "  he  was  very  likely  a  wise 
man  in  his  way." 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly,"  admitted  the  trapper.  "  But  the 
way  wasn't  a  good  un,  Henry,  for  what's  the  use  of  bein' 
knowin'  if  ye  can't  make  it  sarve  ye.  The  larnin'  that 
don't  help  a  man  find  his  way  when  he  is  fetchin'  his  trail 
tb  rough  the  woods,  and  don't  tell  him  where  to  find  the 
spring  holes  or  the  spawnin'  beds  or  the  places  on  the  mash 
where  the  bucks  feed,  or  how  to  cook  his  venison  arter  he 
has  got  it  to  his  camp,  isn't  wuth  much  to  a  mortal  for 
sartin.  For  larnin'  is  given  to  us,  as  I  conceit,  as  the 
scent  is  given  to  the  nose  of  the  hound,  for  the  parposes  of 
life ;  and  larnin'  that  don't  tell  a  man  when  he  is  in  danger 
how  to  git  out  of  it,  or  when  he  is  hungry  how  to  satisfy 
the  cravin's  of  his  natur',  is  of  no  raal  use  to  a  man  as  I 
jedge." 

"The  Bible  says,"  interrupted  the  Lad  " 'Take- no - 
thought  -  of  -  what  -  ye  -  shall  -  eat  -  or  -  what  -  ye  -  shall 
-  diink,  -  or  -  what  -  ye  -  shall  -  put  -  on  -  for  -  after  -  all  - 
these  -things  -  the  -  Gentiles  --  seek.' " 

"Yis,  vis,"  said  the  Trapper,  "them  Gentiles  always 
seemed  to  me  to  have  the  right  idees  of  it.  And  I  never 
could  understand  how  the  Lord  could  think  they  was 
off  the  trail,  if  they  was  honestly  sarchin'  for  victals  and 
clothin'  to  kiver  their  nakedness.  No,  I  never  could  see 
quite  how  they  was  wrong  in  doin'jest  what  every  man 
has  to  do  to  keep  body  and  soul  together.  What  did  he 
mean,  Henry,  when  he  told  them  not  to  think  about  their 
victals  and  their  garments?     He  didn't  mean  to  have 


322  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

them  go  naked  did  he,  or  trust  to  luck  in  the  matter? 

"No,  by  no  means,"  responded  Herbert,  "the  phrase 
'  take  no  heed '  means  not  to  be  anxious ;  not  to  worry 
about  it." 

"  Well,  well,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  now  I  git  the  direction 
of  the  trail.  Lord-a-massy !  how  different  the  Scriptur' 
looks  from  one  p'int  than  it  does  from  another.  It  sartinly 
don't  do  any  good  to  worry  over  a  thing.  Many  be  the 
nights  when  I  used  to  be  out  scoutin'  that  I've  gone  to  bed 
in  the  leaves  hollow  as  a  horn  without  a  karnal  in  it,  won- 
derin'  where  I'd  find  breakfast  in  the  mornin' ;  but  worryin' 
never  brought  a  partridge  to  the  snare  yit,  or  a  trout  to  the 
hook.  And  there's  but  one  way  for  a  mortal  to  act  when 
he's  in  a  pinch,  and  that  is  to  do  the  best  he  knows  how 
and  trust  to  the  Lord  for  the  rest.  But  the  doin'  must  be 
put  under  the  trustin'  as  the  powder  is  under  the  bullet,  as 
I  conceit." 

It  was  with  such  converse  that  our  friends  beguiled  the 
evening,  as  the  hours  sped  along.  Now  and  then  the  Old 
Trapper  was  prevailed  upon  to  tell  the  story  of  his  life,  or 
narrate  passages  of  it  as  it  had  occurred  on  the  trail  and  in 
battle,  or  in  times  of  peace  when  he  lived  quietly  amid 
the  solitudes  of  nature.  These  narrations  of  experience 
were  told  with  a  vividness  of  imagery  and  energy  of 
utterance  that  made  the  scenes  he  described  stand  out  in 
startling  clearness  to  the  miuds  of  the  listeners ;  for  he 
told  them  with  the  voice  and  action  of  one  who  was  not 
only  speaking  of  deeds,  in  whose  performance  he  had 
been   the    prominent    actor,    but   also    with   the  uncon- 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  823 

scious  grace  and  power  of  a  man  whose  blood  kindles  with 
beat  at  the  reminiscence ;  and  who,  without  knowing  it, 
lent  to  the  narration  the  charm  of  a  superb,  because  a 
natural,  elocution.  To-night  Herbert  had  purposely  drawn 
him  out  in  this  direction,  for  he  and  his  companion  liked 
nothing  better  than  such  an  entertainment  as  the  stories  of 
the  Old  Trapper  afforded.  In  this  way  the  hours  had  come 
and  gone  until  the  evening  was  far  advanced,  and  the  noon 
of  night  was  actually  nigh.  But  neither  of  the  three  had 
noted  the  passage  of  time,  nor  would  they  even  then  had 
not  the  Old  Trapper's  eye  caught  the  gleam  of  a  star  above 
the  mountain  which  revealed  to  him  the  fact  that  he  had 
been  talking  for  hours. 

"  Lord-a-massy,  Henry  ! "  ejaculated  the  old  man  as  he 
caught  the  gleam  of  the  distant  orb.  "  It's  arter  ten  o'clock 
and  je've  kept  me  talkin'  like  a  dozen  Frenchers  when  lost 
in  the  fog.  But  it's  the  last  night  ye'll  be  with  us,  Henry, 
and  mayhaps  it's  well  as  it  is.  Come,  Lad,  git  yer  fiddle  out. 
Don't  let  it  be  said  that  the  boy  went  to  the  settlements 
without  takin'  yer  music  in  his  ears.  Te  needn't  play  any- 
thing lively  to-night  for  we  sartinly  don't  feel  like  dancin', 
but  somethin'  pleasant  and  cheerful  like,  and  a  leetle  easy 
in  its  motions,  as  a  friend  would  say  'good-bye'  to  friend 
when  standin'  at  the  p'int  where  their  trails  parted. 

The  Lad  did  as  he  was  requested  j  and  involuntarily  gave 
m  exhibition  of  his  command  of  the  instrument  which  as- 
tonished Herbert ;  familiar  as  he  was  with  the  playing  of 
the  masters  of  his  time.  The  moment  that  the  Lad's  fin- 
gers touched  the  strings,  and  the  bow  began  to  move  over 


324  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

them,  the  violin  seemed  no  longer  a  foreign  substance  but  a 
portion  of  himself.  And  of  that  self,  too,  within  his  body 
which  stood  not  for  his  personality  alone,  but  for  that  greater 
one  who,  while  limiting  him  in  the  average  human  faculties, 
had  endowed  him  with  compensating  liberality  with  a  faculty 
of  reception  and  impartment  which  could  not  be  called  less 
than  divine.  There  was  no  mood  of  nature  that  the  poor  boy 
with  the  violin  in  his  hand  could  not  reflect.  It  laughed  — 
it  wept  —  it  rollicked  —  it  joked  —  it  sobbed.  The  flutter- 
ing leaf —  the  sighing  wind  —  the  roaring  hurricane  —  the 
laughing  splash  of  happy  waters  —  the  loon's  weird  cry  — 
the  robin's  flute — all  the  sounds  his  ear  could  catch,  his 
fingers  could  draw  forth. 

It  was  certainly,  a  scene  that  Herbert  would  not  be  likely 
to  forget.  The  great  fire  flared  and  flamed  upward.  The  cool, 
pine-scented  air  blew  steadily  across  the  lake,  and  the  waves 
fell  with  measured  splash  on  the  beach.  The  great  pines 
overhead  swayed  by  the  wind,  sent  out  their  softened  mono- 
tones. The  Lad  sat  with  his  back  to  the  fire  gazing  out 
into  the  star-lighted  darkness.  Tho  Trapper  and  Herbert 
reclined  in  easy  posture,  gazing  steadily  at  the  upward-go- 
ing flame ;  and  all  the  while  the  violin  sent  out  its  tuneful 
strain.  Not  light  and  airy,  nor  grave  and  sad ;  but  pure, 
cheerful  and  sweet,  as  is  the  mood  of  friend  parting  with 
friend  when  love  has  made  the  parting  tender,  but  hope 
forbids  it  to  be  sad. 

At  last  the  music  ceased,  and  the  Lad  turued  his  simple 
face  toward  the  fire  with  a  light  on  it  finer  than  the  reflec- 
tion that  an  earthly  flame  could  give  to  human  countenauce. 


THE  MAN   T1IAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  325 

'  u  Yis,  Lad,  ye've  said  it  well,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  ye've 
sartinly  said  it  well ;  and  Herbert  and  me  have  understood  it 
as  ye  have  gone  on.  Ye  sartinly  aint  over-knowin'  with 
yer  tongue  but  yer  sperit  is  right ;  and  the  Lord  has  gin  ye 
a  gift  that  the  great  ones  of  the  'arth  might  envy.  I  sar- 
tinly wish  ye  could  play  to  the  folks  in  the  settlements}  it 
would  set  them  wonderin'." 

u  I  don't  think  I  could  play  in  the  cities,"  said  the  Lad. 
"I  never  could  play  to  anyone  but  mother  in  the  house,  and 
I  never  played  but  a  few  times  to  her  there ;  for  when  she 
was  tired  and  wanted  comforting  she  used  to  go  down  with 
me  to  the  shore  and  have  me  play  for  her  there.  And  she 
used  to  kiss  me  when  I  finished  playing,  and  say  I  was  the 
best  boy  she  had,  and  a  great  comfort  to  her,  even  if  I  didn't 
learn  so  fast  as  the  other  children  did." 

"I  understand  it,  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  "yis,  I  under- 
stand it,  and  yer  mother  was  right ;  and  ye  comforted  her  in 
the  days  of  her  trouble  beyend  what  ye  know,  and  ye'll  sar- 
tinly find  her  ag'in,  and  I  dare  say  waitin'  for  ye  when  ye 
come  to  the  Great  Clearin'.  Come,  let's  go  to  bed,"  contin- 
ued the  old  man.  The  night  is  passin',  and  the  mornin'  is 
drawin  on,  and  we  three  shall  start  on  a  long  trail  to-mor- 
rer,  and  it's  best  that  we  strike  it  well  rested." 

It  was  morning  5  and  the  Old  Trapper  was  up  with  the 
earliest  dawn,  busy  in  preparing  the  morning  meal.  It  was 
evident  by  the  amount  and  variety  of  the  dishes,  that  he 
was  anxious  that  it  should  be  more  than  ordinary ;  for  it 
required  every  plate  and  dish  in  the  camp  to  hold  the  re- 
sult of  his  labors.     He  worked  at  his  self-iinposed  task  as 


326  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

one  whose  mind  is  pre-occupied,  and  who  would  fain  seek 
in  activity,  relief  from  what  would  otherwise  oppress  him. 
An  observer  would  have  noticed  that  as  he  came  and  went 
in  his  motions  around  the  fire,  his  eyes  frequently  turned 
toward  the  spot  where  Herbert  was  sleeping,  and  at  every 
look  the  shadow  on  his  face  grew  deeper.  It  would  have 
been  evident  to  such  a  spectator  that  the  old  man  had  be- 
come strongly  attached  to  his  young  companion,  and  could 
with  difficulty  bring  himself  to  think  with  equanimity  of 
the  coming  separation. 

At  last  his  preparations  were  all  made.  The  meal  was 
ready.  Then  lifting  the  corner  of  the  blanket  beneath  which 
the  Lad  and  Herbert  lay  stretched,  he  said : 

"  Come  Henry ;  come  Lad ;  breakfast  is  ready,  and  the 
sun  will  soon  be  on  the  mountains.  The  venison  is  done  to 
a  turn,  and  the  trout  be  ready  for  the  teeth.  It  be  the  last 
meal  we  shall  eat  together,  for  many  a  day,  and  it  isn't 
cheerful-like  for  friends  to  be  hurried  in  their  eatin'  when 
the  hour  of  partin'  is  nigh.  So  dip  yer  heads  in  the  lake  a 
minit,  and  we'll  have  a  meal  that'll  be  pleasant  to  remem- 
ber when  the  miles  be  atween  us." 

In  a  tew  minutes  the  young  men  were  ready  for  the  re- 
past, and  the  three  seated  themselves  at  a  table  loaded 
with  food  of  a  quality,  and  cooked  with  a  skill,  that  the 
cities  cannot  provide,  and  were  soon  eating  with  appetites 
which  no  ordinary  circumstance  could  affect ;  nor  was  the 
humor  which  was  wont  to  enliven  their  companionship 
lacking. 

"  It  strikes  me,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  shoved  a 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  327 

plate  loaded  heavily  with  broiled  venison  from  which  the 
red  juices  were  actually  dripping  toward  him,  with  a  mo- 
tion whose  invitation  Herbert  was  not  slow  to  accept ;  "  it 
strikes  me,  Henry,  that  yer  appetite  is  gittin'  dangerous ; 
and  it  may  be  that  yer  goin'  home  is  providential,  as  the 
missioners  say.  There  sartinly  has  been  a  good  deal  of 
cookin'  on  this  trip ;  and  considerin'  that  we  be  but  three, 
it's  puzzlin'  to  think  where  the  meat  has  all  gone  to.  Ease 
out  another  hole  in  yer  belt,  Lad,"  said  the  old  man,  laugh- 
ing, "  and  clean  the  plate.  If  ye'd  had  this  feedin'  when  ye 
was  a  boy  ye'd  been  bigger  waisted  than  ye  be  j  for  its  a 
thin  s'ile  where  the  trees  grow  spindlin'.  Ye'll  thicken  up, 
afore  Henry  sees  ye  agin,  or  John  Norton  don't  know 
the  habits  of  natur'."' 

The  two  young  men  laughed  heartily,  and  renewed  their 
attack  on  the  edibles  in  a  manner  which  threatened  to 
speedily  clear  the  table. 

"  Now,  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  as  he  arose,  and  taking 
a  frying-pan  from  near  the  fire",  where  he  had  carefully 
placed  it  at  the  beginning  of  the  meal,  "if  the  Lad  will 
bring  the  honey  that  he  found  on  the  carry  the  other  day, 
I'll  give  ye  some  pancakes  that'll  make  ye  hate  the  cookin' 
of  the  settlements  when  ye  be  away  from  us.  Lord !  I 
thought  I  should  die  laughin'  when  I  seed  the  Lad  peelin' 
it  through  the  scrub  oak  with  the  bees  peltin'  him  in  his 
back  arter  the  plug  come  out  of  the  hole,  and  the  leetle 
chaps  had  diskivered  who  was  pillaging  their  winter's  store. 
His  legs  couldn't  have  played  livelier  if  they'd  beeu  keepin' 
tune  to  one  of  his  jigs.    If  there's  anything  that'll  make 


. 


328  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

a  man  nimble,  it's  when  he's  emptied  a  hive  round  his  ears 
and  the  water  is  forty  rod  away.  Did  ye  feel  any  oneas- 
iness  Lad  as  ye  struck  for  the  lake  ?  Ye  sartinly  wasn't 
mindful  where  ye  stepped,  for  ye  made  a  trail  as  wide  as  a 
harrer !"  and  the  old  man  actually  had  to  pause  a  moment 
to  wipe  the  tears  from  his  eyes ;  while  his  two  young  com- 
panions roared  and  screamed  in  the  merriment  of  the  recol- 
lection. 

"  Look  here,  Henry ! "  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  in  a  mo- 
ment, "  did  ye  ever  see  a  nicer  brown  than  that  ?"  and  with 
a  skilful  upward  turn  of  his  wrist  he  sent  the  five  pancakes 
into  the  air  in  such  a  way  as  caused  them  to  turn  a  com- 
plete somersault,  and  skilfully  them  caught  in  the  pan  as 
they  descended.  "  Did  ye  ever  see  a  better  brown  than 
that,  Henry  ? "  Ye'll  find  it  eenamost  the  color  of  the  honey 
itself  when  it  drips  from  the  comb  onto  it.  A  strip  of 
pork,  good  flour,  a  leetle  Indian  meal,  the  right  kind  of  a 
pan,  and  a  heap  of  beech  coals  like  these  —  is  sartinly  what 
makes  the  cakes  look  right.  And  then,  if  the  butter  be 
sweet,  and  the  honey  pure,  and  the  appetite  keen,  I  can't 
conceit  of  any  better  eatin'  in  the  world.  Now,  ye  eat  and 
I'll  cook  ;  for  a  cake  aint  wuth  a  cent  when  it's  cold.  It 
gits  soggy,  and  lays  on  the  stomach  like  a  lie  on  the  con- 
science. And  though  I  know  ye  be  lively  with  yer  teeth, 
yit  if  the  coals  hold  hot  I  sartinly  think  I  can  keep  up  with 
ye." 

It  might  have  been  ten  minutes  that  the  cooking  and  the 
eating  continued  ;  and,  to  borrow  a  commercial  phrase,  "  the 
supply  was  just  equal  to  the  demand."  A  happier  face  than 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  329 

the  Old  Trapper's,  as  he  stood,  pan  in  hand,  with  the  heat 
of  the  coals  brightening  his  countenance,  was  never  seen. 
Benevolence  and  humor  united  themselves  in  its  expres- 
sion. A  wise,  strong  face  it  was,  without  a  coarse  line  in 
it;  without  a  trace  of  weakness;  and  on  whose  front,  in- 
firmity as  yet  had  worn  no  prophetic  mark.  The  face  of 
a  man  who  had  done  no  evil,  had  yielded  to  no  vice,  but 
lived  in  the  innocence  of  a  nature  to  which  the  exercise  of 
virtue  supplied  all  the  stimulation  that  it  craved.  The  face 
of  a  man  thus  gifted  in  birth,  and  thus  educated  by  life,  in 
happy  mood :  the  mood  of  one  who  feels  that  he  is  minis- 
tering to  the  happiness  of  those  whom  he  loves. 

"Come,"  said  Herbert  as  he  rose  from  the  table  and  ap- 
proached the  fire,  "  give  me  the  pan,  John  Norton,  and  as 
you  have  cooked  for  me  so  I  will  cook  for  you,  and  I  think 
I'll  give  them  a  brown  as  rich  and  warm  as  you  have  been 
doing." 

"  I  don't  doubt  it,  Henry,  I  don't  doubt  it ;  for  sartinly  ye 
have  the  gift  of  cookin'.  Ye  haven't  forgotten  the  time  I 
met  ye,  boy,  on  the  lonely  lake,  have  ye,  nor  the  steak  and 
the  cakes  ye  cooked  for  me,  and  the  tea  that  ye  steeped  ? 
Lord-a-massy !  what  tea  that  was.  Do  ye  think  ye  could 
git  any  more  of  the  yarb  like  that  in  the  settlement? " 

"  I'll  send  you  a  chest,  John  Norton ;  and  I'll  start  it  the 
first  day  I  get  back." 

"A  chest!  Lord,  boy,  what  be  ye  takin'  about?  What 
does  an  old  man  like  me  want  of  a  chest  of  tea  ?  Ye  don't 
think  I'll  turn  into  a  Dutch  woman,  do  ye?  —  that  does 
nothing  but  drink  from  mornin'  till  night!    No,  no;  if  ye 


330  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

would  send  me  a  pound,  say,  and  do  it  up  in  strong  wrap- 
pin's,  and  put  my  name  on  it,  I  warrant  it'd  come  through 
all  right.  And  it  would  be  a  great  comfort  to  me  to  steep  a 
.leetle  of  it  arter  I'd  got  in  from  the  line  of  my  traps,  wet 
and  hungry,  some  nights.  Yis,  it  would  sartinly  be  cheerful 
to  steep  a  leetle  of  yer  gift,  Henry ;  for  it  would  sorter  bring 
ye  back  into  the  cabin,  and  the  sound  of  yer  voice  and  the 
sight  of  yer  face  would  brighten  up  the  place  a  leetle,  — 
especially  if  the  night  was  stormy  and  the  Lad  should  chance 
to  be  away." 

"Well,  never  mind  about  the  amount,"  said  Herbert. 
"You  shall  have  the  tea;  and  enough  so  you  needn't  be 
sparing  of  it."  • 

While  they  had  been  talkiDg,  Herbert  had  dipped  the  bat- 
ter into  his  pan,  and  the  first  dish  of  cakes  was  now  ready 
for  the  plate.  He  approached  the  old  man  as  he  sat  at  the 
table,  and  taking  a  couple  up  with  his  fiat  turner,  he  placed 
them  before  him.  They  were  amber-colored  about  the 
edges,  and  rich  chestnut  brown  at  the  center,  and  so  light 
that  the  upper  scarce  seemed  to  touch  the  lower  one  as  it 
lay  on  it.  The  old  man  looked  at  them  critically  a  moment, 
and  then  he  took  a  spoonful  of  the  honey  and  let  the  con- 
tents drip  in  great  golden  globules  on  to  the  cake  beneath ; 
then  taking  his  knife  he  spread  the  transparent  liquid 
smoothly  over  the  cakes.  All  this  was  done  with  the  delica- 
cy of  touch  ot  a  true  artist  in  eating ;  of  one  who  feeds  hear- 
tily, but  not  grossly,  and  eats  with  his  eyes  as  well  as  his 
mouth. 

"  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  "  them  cakes  be  jediciously 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  331 

cooked.  I  actally  think  that  ye've  beaten  mine  in  the  color, 
—  'specially  in  the  color  round  the  edges ;  but  ye'll  allow 
that  my  cookin'  warmed  the  pan  up,  and  ye  can't  color  a 
cake  jest  right  onless  the  pan  is  properly  heated.  And  now 
that  the  iron  is  jest  right,  I  hope  ye'll  keep  it  a-goin'  for  a 
few  minits  till  I  have  eaten  my  fill." 

The  sun  had  scarcely  risen  when  the  three  were  ready  to 
leave  the  island.  The  Lad  was  already  in  his  seat,  holding 
his  oars  for  the  start ;  and  the  Old  Trapper  was  steadying 
the  stern  on  the  beach.  The  two  hounds  were  standing  on 
the  sands,  and  Herbert  had  paused  on  his  way  to  the  boat 
to  caress  them  a  moment.  Both  of  them  were  lifted  erect 
on  their  hind  legs,  with  their  paws  on  the  young  man's 
shoulder,  while  with  either  hand  he  was  stroking  their 
heads. 

" That's  right,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper.  "The  pups 
know  ye  be  goin',  and  in  their  way  they  be  wishin'  ye  good- 
bye. They've  been  oneasy  all  the  mornin'  for  they  know'd 
that  something  onusal  was  goin'  on.  It'll  be  many  a  year 
afore  they  see  ye  ag'in,  perhaps,  but  they'll  not  forgit  ye ; 
and  when  ye  come  back,  if  they  be  livin'  ye'll  be  sure  of  a 
welcome  that'll  make  yer  face  shine.  Ah,  me !  It  seems 
a  long  time  sence  we  met  at  the  pond  of  the  beavers ;  and 
it'll  mike  many  a  long  evenin'  shorter  to  think  of  the  frolics 
that  we  have  had  together." 

While  the  old  man  had  been  speaking  Herbert  had  parted 
from  the  dogs,  and  stepped  into  the  boat.  The  old  man 
lifted  it  from  the  sand,  and  with  a  strong  shove  pushed  it 
suddenly  out  into  the  lake,  springing  with  the  agility  of 


332  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

youth  into  his  seat  as  he  did  it.  The  Lad  swept  his  oars 
into  the  water,  and  the  Trapper  joined  the  stroke  with  the 
motion  of  his  paddle.  The  two  hounds  sat  down  side  by 
side  on  the  sand,  and,  with  the  gravity  of  their  species, 
gazed  silently  at  the  receding  forms.  Nor  had  they  moved 
from  their  position  when  the  boat  glided  round  the  northern 
point  of  the  island,  and  the  intervening  rocks  shut  them 
from  view. 

"  I'm  glad  the  pups  didn't  give  mouth  at  yer  goin',  Hen- 
ry," said  the  Trapper ;  "  for  though  I  know  a  dog  can't  shor- 
ten the  days  of  a  man,  yit  the  Maker  has  given  a  curious 
sense  to  some  of  his  cretur's  ;  and  I  never  yit  know'd  a  dog 
to  howl  at  the  goin'  of  his  master,  and  something  not  hap- 
pen afore  he  returned.  Yis,  I  sartinly  take  it  as  a  cheerful 
sign  that  we  three  shall  come  together  in  health  and  hap- 
piness ag'in  in  the  day  that  the  Lord  app'ints." 

It  took  but  a  few  minutes  for  the  boat  to  cover  the  dis- 
tance it  had  to  go;  for  the  air  was  sharp  and  keen;  the 
water  level  as  a  floor,  and  the  Lad  pulled  a  stroke  which, 
assisted  as  it  was  by  the  paddle  of  the  Trapper,  shot  the 
sharp  vessel  along  at  an  astonishing  pace. 

At  the  hotel  no  one  was  stirring,  save  here  and  there  a 
guide  was  washing  out  his  boat  preparatory  for  an  early 
start. 

A  moment  after  the  boat  touched  the  landing  Herbert's 
pack  had  been  transferred  to  the.  shore,  and  the  three  men 
were  standing  side  by  side.  Things  had  occurred  since  they 
met  which  made  the  parting  unusually  tender.  Herbert  was 
thinking  of  the  death  he  had  narrowly  escaped,  and.  that  it 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  333 

was  solely  owing  to  the  skill  and  affection  of  the  two  men 
from  whom  he  was  now  to  part,  that  he  was  still  alive. 

"  I  shan't  forgit  the  spot  nor  the  hour,  Henry ; "  said  the 
Trapper,  referring  to  some  previous  conversation,  "  and  if 
the  Lad  and  me  be  livin'  ye'll  find  us  at  the  time  app'inted 
on  the  big  ledge  at  the  mouth  of  Cold  Eiver  when  the  early 
shadders  be  darkenin'  the  stream.  And  ye  needn't  worry  if 
ye  be  late  by  a  day  or  two,  for  the  boy  and  me  will  camp 
there  till  ye  come,  even  if  ye  be  a  week  behind  yer  time." 

"  If  I  don't  come  by  the  second  day,"  returned  Herbert, 
"  you  may  know  that  something  has  happened  to  keep  me 
from  coming  in,  and  you  needn't  wait  longer;  but  if  I  am 
alive  and  well  you'll  see  my  boat  heading  for  that  rock,  when 
the  sun  is  an  hour  above  its  setting  on  the  date  I  gave  you, 
next  summer  or  the  first  summer  I  can  come." 

"  I  have  ben  thinkin'  about  the  horn,  Henry,"  said  the  old 
man,  as  he  took  a  bundle  from  under  his  jacket  and  handed 
it  to  Herbert ;  "  yis,  I've  ben  thinkin'  about  the  horn,  boy, 
and  it'll  sartinly  make  my  heart  lighter  if  ye'll  take  it  home 
with  ye,  and  hang  it  to  the  hammers  of  yer  rifle  where  yer 
eyes  can  often  see  it.  For  I  be  older  than  ye,  and  though  I 
conceit  the  Lord  will  spare  me  many  a  year,  yit  a  man 
whose  head  is  whitenin'  can't  look  with  sech  sartinty  ahead, 
as  the.  young ;  and  if  anything  should  happen  it  would  be 
better  that  the  horn  was  with  ye.  I  don't  give  it  to  ye,  be- 
cause it's  yourn  as  much  as  mine,  and  accordin'  to  the  laws 
of  the  shootin'  it's  yourn  altogether ;  but  it's  the  only  thing 
I  have  to  give,  onless  it  be  the  rifle,  and  if  ye'll  take  the 
horn  and  anything  happens,  the  Lad  will  see  that  the  gun 


334  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

gits  to  ye,  also,  for  ye  be  the  only  man  I  ever  seed  whoso 
eye  and  finger  could  bring  out  the  vartues  of  the  piece. 
The  two  would  help  ye  remember  an  old  man  that  shot  for 
yer  life  once,  when  the  chances  was  agin  him,  and  that  loved 
ye  as  if  ye  was  his  own  boy.  We  shall  camp  on  the  head- 
waters of  the  Kacquette  this  winter,  and  if  ye  felt  like 
writin'  the  Lad  and  me  a  letter  some  time,  it  may  be  sc  me 
trapper-might  fetch  it  through ;  but  it's  by  no  means  sartiu, 
and  ye  needn't  trouble  yerself  with  the  matter.  Now,  boy, 
as  the  folks  will  soon  be  stirrin'  it  may  be  jest  as  well  that 
the  Lad  and  me  be  off ;  for  the  sun  be  fairly  up,  and  afore 
it  sets  we  must  be  sixty  mile  to  the  south.  Come,  Lad, 
take  the  hand  of  the  man  ye  saved  by  yer  diviu',  and  then 
we'll  go.  The  Lord  brought  us  together  at  the  pond  of  the 
beavers,  and  the  Lord  will  bring  us  together  ag'in  on  the 
ledge  at  Cold  Kiver  if  his  will  shall  app'int." 

The  lad  took  the  hand  of  Herbert,  looked  for  a  moment 
into  the  face  of  the  man  he  had  saved  from  death,  and  then 
without  a  word,  but  with  a  face  slightly  paler  than  was  its 
wont,  stepped  into  the  boat  and  seated  himself  at  the  oar. 
The  Trapper  took  the  hand  that  the  Lad  had  dropped,  and 
for  a  moment  the  two  men  gazed  into  each  other's  faces. 
Once  the  old  man  essayed  to  speak;  but  as  if  he  had 
checked  the  rising  thought  while  his  tongue  was  striving  to 
form  it  into  sound,  or  from  some  other  cause,  the  sentence 
remained  unspoken.  For  his  hand  released  its  hold  on  Her- 
bert's, and  without  uttering  a  word  he  turned,  and  lifting 
his  paddle  he  shoved  the  boat  from  the  landing  and  leapt 
lightly  to  his  seat.    The  boat  moved  round  the  angle  of  the 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  335 

wbarf  and  headed  down  the  lake.  Herbert  stepped  to  the 
piazza  of  the  hotel,  and  leaning  against  a  pillar,  watched  it 
steadfastly  as  it  receded  from  view.  In  a  few  moments  it 
had  reached  the  first  of  the  islands,  and  as  it  swung  round, 
Herbert  fancied  that  he  saw  the  hand  of  the  Trapper  lifted 
into  the  air ;  but  in  this  he  might  have  been  mistaken.  The 
next  instant  it  shot  beyond  the  huge  bowlder  that  made  the 
point  of  the  island,  and  vanished  from  sight. 

For  a  moment  the  young  man  stood  with  his  eyes  fixed 
upon  the  spot  where  the  boat  had  last  been  seen ;  and  then 
he  turned,  and  lifting  his  pack  passed  into  the  house.  Many 
things  transpired  of  which  they  little  dreamed ;  and  years, 
bringing  their  changes,  came  and  went  before  the  three  met 
again. 


THE   STORY   OF 

THE  MAN  WHO  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH. 

Part  III. 


CHAPTER  I. 

SOME  OLD  FRIENDS. 
"  Far  from  gay  cities  and  the  ways  of  men."—  The  Odyssey. 

TT  was  July ;  and  a  hot  summer's  day  was  drawing  to  a 
close.  A  torrid  wave,  born  of  the  intense  heat  of  the 
tropics,  had  moved  northward ;  and  the  northern  mountains 
had  not  cooled  it  a  degree.  The  heated  wave  had  rolled 
across  the  lake,  and  up  the  valleys,  and  over  the  crests  of 
the  great  hills,  until  the  very  atmosphere,  ordinarily  delic- 
iously  cool,  seemed  blistered,  as  if  it  were  being  burned 
through  and  through  by  invisible  fire.  The  tall  pines,  tas- 
seled  with  their  needle-like  stems,  fairly  glistened  in  the 
hot  scintillating  light.  The  winds  kept  their  caves,  as  if 
afraid  to  move  beyond  their  dripping  mouths.  The  water 
stood  with  a  dull  gleam  on  it,  like  molten  metal.  The 
reeds  on  the  marshes  drooped  and  hung  their  heads,  as 
with  fatigue.  Even  the  cool,  dark  balsams  for  once  looked 
hot ;  and  under  the  intense  heat  hung  damp  with  gummy 
sweat.  The  wild  roses  shrivelled  and  disappeared.  The 
white  lilies  contracted,  and  hid  their  beauty  and  perfumo 
within  the  cool  protection  of  their  green,  almond-shaped 


340  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

lobes.  Above,  the  sky  was  brazen.  In  it  the  sun  stood  red 
and  blood-like ;  its  orb  quivering  with  intense  fervors,  and 
clearly  rimmed  as  if  it  had  lost  the  power  to  emit  its  daz- 
zling rays.  The  wilderness  was  silent.  The  heat  had  acted 
like  a  drug  on  bird  and  beast  and  fish ;  and  even  on  water 
and  air.  Only  one  sound  survived :  the  mouth  of  Cold 
Eiver,  where  it  poured  its  current  over  the  shining  sand 
and  the  smooth  beaming  pebbles  into  the  Eacquette,  still 
sang  its  rippling  song.  But  beside  the  musical  gurgle  and 
tuneful  lapse  of  the  easy-flowing  current,  there  was  no 
sound  in  all  the  air. 

On  the  great  ledge  which  thrusts  itself  sternly  out  into 
the  Eacquette,  just  below  the  mouth  of  Cold  Eiver,  two  men 
were  standing.  It  needed  but  a  glance  for  one  to  recognize 
in  the  two  forms  the  Old  Trapper  and  the  Lad.  The  Lad 
was  leaning  on  his  paddle  j  and  the  Old  Trapper  was  stand- 
ing erect,  with  his  rifle  resting  in  the  hollow  of  his  arm, 
gazing  steadfastly  down  the  stream. 

"  Three  years  have  come  and  gone  sence  he  told  us  to 
wait  for  him  here.  And  twice  afore  this  have  you  and  me 
waited  on  this  rock  till  the  sun  darkened  the  stream  ;  but 
the  boy  did  not  come.  And  here  we  be  ag'in  accordin'  to 
promise.  And  the  hour  has  sartinly  come  for  his  appearing 
for  he  said,  '  If  I  be  alive  and  well  ye'll  see  my  boat  headin' 
for  that  rock  when  the  sun  is  an  hour  above  its  settin',  on 
the  date  I  give  ye,  next  summer,  or  the  fust  summer  I  can 
come  in.'  Yis,  them  be  the  very  words,  Lad,  he  said  on  the 
landin'  at  Lower  Saranac,  the  morn  when  we  parted.  And 
I  know  if  he  be  livin'  he'll  keep  his  promise  which  he  gave 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  341 

to  an  old  man  who  shot  fur  his  life  when  the  chances  was 
ag'in  him.  But  the  hour  has  sartinly  come  and  the  boy  is 
not  here.  I  fear,  Lad,  yis  I  sartinly  fear  that  somethin'  is 
wrong ;  and  that  I  shall  never  hear  the  crack  of  his  piece 
ag'in,  or  see  his  face  by  the  light  of  the  camp-fire." 

"  It  may  be  that  he  has  forgotten  us,  John  Norton ;  for 
the  folks  that  live  in  the  city,  I  have  heard,  have  a  great  deal 
to  do,  and  forget  things  easily." 

"Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  "I've  lived  on  the 'arth  eighty 
year,  and  have  knowed  many  men ;  and  have  seed  them 
that  be  true  and  them  that  be  false :  and  I  larnt  fifty  year 
ago  to  know  the  difference  atween  Jem.  And  I  tell  ye  that 
Henry  be  one  of  the  kind  that  never  forgits.  Ye  can  see  it 
in  his  eye  and  ye  can  hear  it  in  his  voice.  The  boy  is 
true  as  the  barrels  of  his  rifle,  and  that  is  savin'  all  that  can 
be  said  in  praise  of  any  man ;  for  the  barrels  be  actally  par- 
feet.  No,  no,  Lad,  the  boy  hasn't  forgot,  and  he'll  sartinly 
come  this  year  or  some  other  year  if  he's  in  the  land  of  the 
livin'." 

At  this  point  the  Lad,  who  was  standing  within  reach, 
slowly  stretched  out  his  moccasined  foot  and  softly  touched 
with  his  toe  the  ankle  of  the  trapper. 

"  Aye,  aye,  Lad,  I  know  what  ye  mean,"  said  the  old  man, 
without  lowering  his  voice,  "  for  I  see  what  ye  see,  and  I 
seed  her  afore  she  put  her  head  through  the  branches  of 
the  balsam.  But  she's  a  mother  doe  and  her  faan  is  not  far 
away,  and  she's  come  down  to  drink  of  the  water  that  the 
Lord  has  made  for  her  comfort  as  he  has  made  it  for  ourn. 
And  never  yit  did  lead  of  mine  tech  the  life  of  a  creetur 


342  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

when  Natur'  made  its  life  sacred.  She  may  drink  of  the 
water  to  her  fill,  and  go  back  to  her  faan  and  the  bed  she 
left  in  the  mosses.  I  know  we  be  without  meat,  Lad,  and 
we'll  go  without  meat  afore  we'll  eat  the  body  of  a  doe 
when  her  faan  still  claims  her." 

"But  what  shall  we  do  for  supper,  John  Norton,"  re- 
sponded the  Lad;  "there  is  flour  enough  and  pork  enough, 
but  we  have  no  meat,  and  I  am  pretty  hungry  to-night." 

"  I  dare  say  ye  be  empty,  Lad,  and  I  am  not  over  full  my- 
self ;  and  it's  only  right  that  the  flour  and  pork  be  used 
sparin',  but  when  the  Lord  can't  feed  a  man  one  way  he 
feeds  him  another,  and  I  sartinly  think  there  is  a  trout  or 
two  lying  round  here  in  this  pool  that  the  Lord  has  appinted 
for  the  safety  of  the  faan  to-night.  Step  to  the  boat,  Lad, 
and  untie  the  rod,  for  the  sun  be  almost  down,  and  the 
smoke  on  the  water  shows  that  its  coolin',  and  we'll  make  a 
cast  or  two  that  mayhaps  will  fill  our  emptiness  arter  the 
fire  be  kindled." 

In  a  moment  the  rod  was  unlashed,  aud  the  Lad  stood  hold- 
ing it  in  his  hand,  ready  for  a  cast.  It  was  plain  that  it  had 
seen  service,  for  the  varnish  had  been  worn  from  the  wood, 
while  the  butt  and  hand-piece  had  the  peculiar,  dark  ap- 
pearance which  comes  to  wood  only  after  long  handling. 
The  reel  was  of  brass,  but  through  carelessness  or  design, 
rust  had  been  allowed  to  gather  on  its  once  polished  sur- 
face, as  also  on  the  brass  ferrules  at  the  joints.  The  line 
was  of  silk,  closely  woven,  while  the  nine  foot  leader  to 
which  three  flies  were  attached,  looked  chafed  and  ragged, 
and  the  flies  themselves  scarcely  retained  half  their  original 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  343 

plumage.      The  whole  appearance  of  the  rod  suggested 
that  it  was  the  victor  in  many  a  tussle  with  the  finny  foe. 

"  Will  you  take  the  rod,  John  Norton  ? "  said  the  Lad. 

"No,  not  fust,"  returned  the  old  man;  "ye  shall  sartinly 
have  the  fust  cast  yerself,  for  it's  wicked  for  an  old  man  to  rob 
a  young  man  of  a  chance  to  larn  the  right  way  to  do  a  thing 
that  he  needs  for  his  stomach's  sake  to  know  how  to  do 
well.  No,  Lad,  ye  shall  have  the  fust  cast,  and  I'll  take  the 
second." 

"  But  I  don't  know  how  to  fish  as  well  as  you  do,  and 
I'm  awful  hungry,  and  I  should  feel  dreadfully  if  I  missed  a 
good  one." 

"  Don't  ye  worry,  Lad,  don't  ye  worry.  I  don't  suppose 
it's  now  as  it  used  to  be,  but  I've  stood  on  this  rock  and 
skittered  a  piece  of  pork  across  the  stream,  and  seen  them 
go  for  it  like  a  Frencher  for  his  garlic.  Yis,  I've  stood  on 
this  rock  and  seen  the  water  bile  as  they  riz  from  the  bot- 
tom and  shot  this  way  and  that,  so  crazy  was  every  one  to 
git  at  the  bait  fust.  But  years  have  come  and  gone  sence 
then,  and  many  be  the  fish  that  have  been  taken  here,  for 
this  pool  has  its  fame,  and  no  city  man  passes  it — nor  guide 
neither,  — for  that  matter,  without  givin'  it  a  try.  But  they 
can't  catch  'em  all,  for  trouts  be  like  men,  some  be  wise 
and  some  foolish ;  and  the  foolish  die  young  and  die  fast, 
but  the  wise  shun  danger  and  live  out  their  days.  And  I 
shouldn't  be  surprised  if  there  was  a  four  pound  trout  some- 
where  in  the  bottom  of  this  pool  yit,  and  it  may  be  a  dozen 
of  'em,  for  Cold  Eiver  is  a  famous  breedin'  ground,  and 
Cold  Eiver  empties  all  its  big  fish  into  this  bend  -}  for  a  big 


344  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

fish  hates  shaller  water  j  and  I  shouldn't  marvel  if  ye  lifted 
a  big  un  if  ye  do  the  thing  jediciously.  So  try  yer  skill, 
and  remember  ye  are  fishing  for  a  supper." 

The  Lad  did  as  he  was  directed.  With  a  motion  by  no 
means  awkward,  he  swept  the  point  of  the  rod  upward.  The 
leader  straightened  itself  in  the  air,  and  then  the  flies  shot 
forward  and  fell  with  gradual  inclination  upon  the  water. 
They  had  not  trailed  a  foot  before  a  trout  broke  the  surface 
with  such  energy,  that  he  shot  his  body  full  three  feet  into 
the  air  and  fell  with  a  splash  into  the  tide.  The  size  of  the 
fish,  the  suddenness  with  which  he  had  appeared,  the  energy 
of  his  rush  and  the  noise  of  it,  had  taken  the  Lad  so  by 
surprise,  that  he  fairly  jumped  from  the  rock  and  an  ex- 
clamation escaped  him.  So  startled  was  he  that  he  actually 
forgot  to  strike,  and  the  fish,  having  held  the  feather  in  his 
mouth  and  tasted  the  deceit,  ejected  it  and  went  to  the  bot- 
tom unharmed.  The  Trapper  laughed  in  hearty  amusement 
at  the  Lad's  expense. 

"Did  ye  think  he  was  a  whale,  Lad?"  exclaimed  the 
Trapper,  "  did  ye  think  he  was  a  whale,  and  he  was  goin'  to 
swaller  ye  ?  Ye  jumped  as  if  ye  thought  he  had  come  up 
arter  ye.  Lord,  Lad,  what  a  thing  narves  be  !  Now,  here 
ye  be,  that  can  pull  the  strongest  oar  I  ever  seed  pulled, 
and  I've  seen  ye  shoot  in  sarcumstances  which  would  try 
most  men,  and  ye  stood  the  test,  and  now  ye  be  jumpin'  a 
foot;  yis,  ye  sartinly  jumped  a  foot,  Lad,  from  that  rock, 
when  the  fish  broke  water.     What  a  thing  narves  be  !  " 

u  Shall  I  try  again,  John  Norton  ? "  said  the  Lad,  who  was 
laughing  himself,  at  his  own  foolishness,  in  spite  of  his  evi- 
dent mortification.    "  Shall  I  try  again  ? " 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  345 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly,"  said  the  old  man,  "  he's  a  good  un, 
and  he'll  rise  ag'in  if  ye'll  give  him  a  chance.  Shall  I  hold 
on  to  ye,  Lad  ?  It  sartinly  isn't  safe  for  ye  to  be  jumpin'  in 
that  way  standin'  where  ye  be  on  the  pint  of  the  rock  j " 
and  the  old  man  laughed. 

"  I  don't  think  I  shall  jump  again,  John  Norton.  I  mean 
to  hook  him  this  time,  sure." 

"  I  guess  ye  will,  Lad,  I  guess  ye  will.  There's  nothin'  so 
sudden  as  a  thing  we  don't  expect,  and  ye  didn't  expect  him 
and  it  started  ye;  but  I  think  ye'll  be  too  quick  for  him  this 
time  if  he  gives  ye  a  chance.  Cast  at  the  same  spot,  Lad, 
for  a  trout  is  like  a  man,  he  resks  his  life  at  the  same  spot 
and  by  the  same  peril,  and  larns  no  caution  by  escapes."    - 

Even  as  he  spoke  the  flies  again  settled  to  the  water,  and 
true  to  the  prediction  of  the  Trapper  the  trout  rose  the 
second  time  with  the  same  quickness  and  energy ;  but  the 
eye  and  the  wrist  of  the  Lad  were  alike  ready  for  him,  and 
the  rod  doubled  up  to  the  strain  which  the  Lad's  sudden 
stroke  put  upon  it.  The  fish  was  fairly  hooked,  and  the  Lad 
played  him  with  dexterity,  and  in  a  minute  he  lay  within 
the  meshes  of  the  landing-net  upon  the  rock. 

"  He's  a  good  un,  Lad ;  yis,  he's  sartinly  a  good  un,"  said 
the  old  man.  "  He'll  weigh  two  pound  and  a  half  if  he 
weighs  an  ounce.  He's  eenamost  enough  to  make  a  sup- 
per ;  that  is,  he  would  be  if  he  wasn't  a  fish.  But  a  man 
can  eat  jest  as  much  fish  as  he  wants  to,  for  there  is  no  eend 
to  his  eatin'  till  he  comes  to  the  eend  of  the  fish.  Fish  aint 
solid :  they  don't  brace  a  man  out  like  venison  or  bear  meat. 
Now  a  piece  of  bear  meat  as  big  as  that  fish  would  make 


346  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

ye  feel  like  a  flour  bag  when  it  comes  from  the  mill ;  yis,  as 
if  ye  weighed  a  ton.  But  one  fish  aint  enough  for  two 
men,  if  they  be  long  and  empty.  Come,  I'll  try  a  cast  my- 
self,  and  it  may  be  the  Lord  has  a  bigger  one  than  this 
waitin'  for  us  in  the  bottom  of  the  pool."  So  saying  the 
Trapper  loosened  some  twenty  feet  of  line  from  the  reel 
and  made  ready  for  the  cast. 

"  How  I  wish  the  boy  was  here,"  he  said,  "  how  I  wish 
the  boy  was  here,"  he  repeated,  "  for  I  never  seed  a  man 
cast  a  fly  quite  as  well  as  he  can  do  it ;  and  this  rod  was  his 
favorite.  He  said  he  had  used  it  twelve  year  afore  he  gin  it 
to  me ;  and  that  is  three  year  agone,  and  I  can't  see  that  it's 
weakened  a  bit  with  all  the  usin'  it's  had.  Many  be  the  time 
I've  seen  the  tip  brought  eenamost  down  to  the  butt  when 
a  big  fish  sot  his  heft  onto  it,  but  I  never  seed  a  fish  git  the 
better  of  it  yit.  Lord,  Lad,  what  a  whirl  that  was !  I  didn't 
think  there  was  as  big  a  fish  in  the  river.  I  wish  the  boy 
was  here  to  make  the  cast,  but  as  he  isn't,  here  goes  !  " 

As  he  spoke  the  Old  Trapper  lifted  his  hand  into  the  air 
and  swept  the  point  of  the  rod  upward  and  back.  Thirty 
feet  of  line  followed  the  movement  and  straightened  taut, 
while  the  flies  hung  in  air  far  up  the  stream,  midway  be- 
tween the  trees.  A  quick  turn  of  the  wrist,  and  the  flies 
leapt  forward,  shot  through  the  air  past  the  rock,  until  the 
line  straightened  in  the  reverse  direction,  and  then  the  feath- 
ers floated,  wavering,  downward  until  they  flecked  the  tide. 
They  lit  upon  the  water  as  lightly  as  if  they  were  not 
weighted  with  the  hooks,  and  without  pausing  an  instant 
began  to  trail  across  the  .stream.    They  had  not  gone  a  yard 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  347 

before  a  yellow  gleam  flashed  past  the  point  of  the  ledge 
on  which  the  Trapper  stood,  and  a  monstrous  trout  broke, 
with  a  headlong  rush,  out  of  the  water,  and  shot  upward 
into  the  air,  as  if  projected  by  an  unseen  force.  Its  very 
eagerness  thwarted  his  purpose,  for  he  missed  the  gaudy 
bait  altogether.  An  instant  he  hung  in  air,  at  the  point  to 
which  his  upward  movement  had  carried  him,  and  then  fell, 
with  a  splash,  into  the  stream. 

An  ejaculation  of  astonished  delight  broke  from  the  Lad's 
mouth  as  he  saw  the  monstrous  fish  above  the  stream.  The 
Old  Trapper  said  not  a  word,  but  a  light  like  the  flash  of  a 
sudden  flame  came  to  his  countenance,  and  quick  as  light- 
ning he  snatched  the  flies  from  the  water  and  swept  them 
backward  for  another  cast.  Again  they  darted  forward  to 
the  full  length  of  the  line  and  again  settled  slowly  upon  the 
tide.  They  had  barely  touched  the  surface  before  the  head 
of  the  fish  showed  itself,  and  his  monstrous  jaws  closed  on 
the  feather.  The  old  man  struck  so  sharp  and  quick  that 
the  rod  fairly  doubled  with  the  stroke  and  the  line  quivered 
with  the  tension  thus  suddenly  put  upon  it,  till  the  water 
flew  from  the  compressed  braids. 

"  You've  got  him,  John  Norton,  you've  got  him! "  cried  the 
Lad,  fairly  startled  out  of  his  ordinary  composure  in  his  ex- 
citement. 

"Yis  —  I  —  have  —  got  —  him,"  said  the  Trapper,  "and 
if  the  gut  don't  part,  and  the  old  rod  holds  together,  we'll 
bake  the  biggest  fish  to-night  I've  seen  for  years." 

The  scene  which  followed  was  one  which  only  a  fisher- 
man can  realize,  and  which  only  a  fisherman  can  enjoy  a 


348  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

dozen  times  in  his  life.  The  fish  was  the  biggest  of  his 
species  j  strong,  thoroughly  aroused,  and  game  in  every 
bone  of  his  body.  The  action  of  the  fish  and  the  play  of 
the  man  who  held  the  rod,  made  a  picture  such  as  is  sel- 
dom seen.  No  sooner  had  he  felt  the  sting  of  the  barbed 
hook  than  the  fish  leapt  wildly  into  the  air,  flinging  himself 
out  with  the  energy  of  a  black  bass ;  but  he  fell  on  r,  line 
slackened  to  receive  him,  and  when  he  struck  the  w  <.ter  it 
was  as  if  he  had  struck  it  in  full  motion,  for  he  tore  his 
progress  up  against  the  current  with  a  velocity  that  caused 
the  line  to  cut  the  water  with  an  angry  hiss.  He  might 
have  passed  the  point  of  the  rock  by  fifty  feet,  when,  with 
a  quickness  that  only  a  trout  can  exhibit,  he  doubled  short 
upon  his  course  and  launched  himself  down  the  stream, 
with  an  energy  which  only  the  largest  fish,  when  thoroughly 
aroused,  can  show.  So  quick  was  the  manoeuvre  and  so 
tremendous  was  the  velocity  with  which  he  passed  the 
point  of  the  rock,  that  he  was  seventy  feet  below  the  ledge 
before  the  old  man  could  get  the  needed  pressure  on  him. 
Only  the  eye  and  the  finger  of  an  expert  could  have  done 
it  as  it  was  done.  The  strain  was  not  put  suddenly  on  the 
rod,  but  with  such  steadiness  that  the  pressure  on  the 
tackle  was  gradual.  But  skillful  as  was  the  management, 
the  fish  was  under  such  headway,  and  his  momentum  was  so 
great,  and  he  fought  the  tackle  with  such  determination, 
that  for  an  instant  even  the  Old  Trapper  doubted  if  he  could 
stop  him.  The  rod  doubled  itself  up  until  the  tip  was  al- 
most even  with  the  butt.  It  quivered  and  swayed  as  a 
stubborn  rod  will  when  tasked  to  the  utmost,  and  all  that 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  349 

the  Trapper  could  do  to  ease  it  seemed  to  bring  it  no  assist- 
ance. It  fairly  creaked,  as  if  its  fibers  were  about  to  part. 
The  Lad  was  too  anxious  to  say  a  word.  His  eyes  were 
fastened  on  the  rod,  and  his  mouth  half  opened  in  suspense. 
The  Old  Trapper  was  the  picture  of  determined  coolness. 
His  face  tightened  in  its  lines,  and  his  teeth  set  themselves. 
He  had  done  all  he  could  do.  This  he  knew ;  and  the  rod 
and  fish  were  fairly  pitted  against  each  other.  For  a  few 
seconds  the  struggle  lasted.  The  fish  tugged  and  shook 
himself,  determined  not  to  yield,  but  the  wood  could  not  be 
overcome.  The  pliancy  of  perfect  nature  and  of  scientific 
workmanship  in  its  construction,  at  last  prevailed.  The 
trout  flung  himself  into  the  air,  and  when  he  fell  the  snap 
was  out  of  him.  He  sank  to  the  bottom,  and  began  to  fin 
himself  easily  up  against  the  current.  The  Trapper  im- 
proved the  opportunity,  and  stowed  the  line  upon  the  reel 
with  the  dexterity  of  long  practice,  quickened  into  swiftest 
action  by  the  emergency.  Like  a  true  fisherman,  he  gave 
the  fish  no  rest,  but  when  the  line  was  packed  and  ready 
to  render,  he  stirred  the  trout  to  action  by  a  sharp  upward 
jerk  that  sent  him  flying.  Eound  and  round  he  went.  He 
circled  the  pool  from  bank  to  bank ;  swimming  so  nigh  the 
surface  that  his  curvatures  marked  the  tide  with  whirls  and 
eddies.  Now  and  then  he  left  the  water,  but  the  eye  of 
one  that  could  not  blunder,  was  on  his  movements;  a  hand 
that  could  not  mistake,  governed  the  action  of  reel  and 
rod ;  and  in  one-fifth  of  the  time  that  it  would  take  some 
club  men,  who  measure  the  skill  of  fishing  by  the  length  of 
time  to  which  they  can  prolong  such  an  exercise,  the  Old 


350  .  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

Trapper  had  the  trout  lying  on  his  side,  panting  with  great 
gasps,  and  had  drawn  him  into  the  landing-net  that  the  Lad 
had  scooped  beneath  him. 

In  another  minute  the  great  trout  lay  upon  the  rock,  and 
the  two  men  were  kneeling  over  him  admiring  his  huge  pro- 
portions and  the  gorgeous  beauty  of  his  tintings ;  but  even 
as  they  thus  knelt,  and  before  either  had  a  chance  to  say  a 
word,  the  sharp  crack  of  a  rifle  ripped  through  the  silent 
air,  and  frightened  a  dozen  echoes  from  the  neighboring 
hillsides. 

If  the  bullet  had  cut  its  way  through  the  garments  of 
the  Trapper,  he  could  not  have  leapt  to  his  feet  with  a 
quicker  motion.  He  fairly  snapped  himself  into  the  air, 
and  as  he  struck  the  perpendicular  he  dashed  a  hand  up- 
ward, and  exclaimed :  — 

»  Henry  \n 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  AMBTJSH. 

"Like  guests  that  meet  and  come  from  far, 
By  cordial  love  invited."—  Wordsworth. 

TT  was  all  that  he  said,  but  he  said  it  with  an  intensity 
that  made  the  exclamation  as  sharp  as  the  crack  of  the 
piece  which  had  caused  it. 

"  What  do  you  mean,  John  Norton  ?  "  said  the  Lad,  who 
still  kept  the  kneeling  posture,  as  he  looked  up  into  the 
face  of  the  old  man,  that  showed  white  through  the  dusk  of 
the  darkening  shadows,  "what  do  you  mean,  John  Nor- 
ton?" 

"  Mean ! "  exclaimed  the  old  man,  "  Lord  of  marcy,  Lad, 
Henry  is  within  a  mile  of  us  !    Didn't  ye  hear  his  piece  ? " 

"  I  heard  a  rifle,"  said  the  Lad,  in  reply,  *•  but  there  are  a 
great  many  rifles  in  the  woods,  and  I  don't  know  why  you 
should  think  it  was  Henry's." 

"  Lad,"  said  the  old  man,  "  ye  are  good  at  rowin'  and  di- 
vin',  and  ye  fiddle  as  naterally  as  a  rabbit  runs ;  and  ye  sar- 
tinly  can  set  a  trap  that  even  a  fox  wouldn't  suspect  —  and 
that's  sayin'  a  good  deal, — for  a  fox  is  the  cunningest  creetur 
the  Lord  has  made.  But  ye  haven't  the  hunter's  gift,  and 
yer  ear  is  lackin'.    I  tell  ye,  Lad,  that  was  the  boy's  rifle 


352  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

that  sounded.  I  should  know  it  if  I  was  dyin',  and  heerd 
it  amid  a  hundred,  when  the  ambushment  was  onkivered 
and  the  scrimmage  was  hot.  The  boy  is  within  a  mile  of 
us.  And  the  trout  won't  be  needed,  onless  it  be  to  make  a 
show." 

"  Why  won't  we  need  the  trout  ?  It's  all  we  have  got, 
but  the  pork  and  the  flour ;  and  if  Henry  is  coming  he  must 
have  pulled  fifty  miles  since  morning,  and  be  as  hungry  as 
I  am." 

"  Lord !  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper  laughing,  "  don't  ye  sup- 
pose I  know  how  the  boy  feels  ?  He's  empty  enough,  be- 
yend  doubt,  and  the  air  of  the  woods  has  sharpened  his 
hunger ;  but  he's  sparin'  of  his  lead,  and  he  shoots  too  well 
to  act  like  a  boy  from  the  settlements,  who  explodes  his 
piece  for  the  sake  of  hearin'  it's  noise.  Tis,  he's  sparin'  of 
his  lead,  and  that  bullet  didn't  go  fur  afore  it  found  some- 
thin'  to  stop  it.  Lord-a-massy  !  how  I  wish  I'd  been  lyiu' 
in  the  mash  grass  when  he  sunk  his  eyes  into  the  sights. 
It's  almost  as  good  to  see  the  boy  go  through  the  motions, 
when  the  buck  stands  lookin'  at  him,  as  it  is  to  hear  ye  fid- 
dle ;  for  the  bow  comes  nateral  to  the  one  and  the  rifle 
comes  nateral  to  the  other.  I  tell  ye,  Lad,  there'll  be  veni- 
son in  the  camp  when  the  boat  teches  this  rock.  Come, 
let's  draw  the  boat  up  into  the  bush,  and  let's  make  an  am- 
bushment. Ah,  me !  it's  wuth  waitin'  three  years,  to  come 
to  the  time  when  I  can  lie  down  in  the  grass  and  watch 
him  paddle  his  boat  up  sech  a  stretch  of  water  as  this. 
How  well  I  remember  the  night  I  ambushed  him  on  tbe 
Lonely  Lake !    Yis,  yis,  let's  make  an  ambushment  for  the 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  353 

boy,  and  see  how  he  acts  when  he  thinks  that  we  ve  forgot- 
ten what  we  pledged  him,  and  that  nobody's  here."  And 
the  old  man  laughed  heartily  to  himself,  out  of  sheer  de- 
light, and  the  pleasure  that  had  come  to  his  heart  at  the 
thought  that  he  would  soon  have  Herbert  by  the  hand. 

In  a  moment  the  boat  was  carried  up  the  ledge,  and  suf- 
ficiently back  from  the  river  to  be  hidden,  and  then  the 
two  men  crawled  back  to  the  edge  of  the  stream  and  drew 
the  grass  over  themselves  in  such  a  way  that  even  in  broad 
daylight  no  eye  could  have  detected  them. 

In  the  mean  time  night  had  settled  darkly  over  the 
woods.  The  sky  was  too  hazy  to  reveal  its  stars,  and  the 
lingering  sunlight  in  the  far  west  had  been  suddenly  extin- 
guished behind  a  great  black  bank  of  clouds  that  portended 
storm.  The  darkness  had  come  with  unusual  suddenness, 
and  was  growing  denser  with  the  passing  of  every  minute. 
The  pines  seemed  to  emit  gloom ;  the  balsams  to  breathe 
out  blackness  with  their  odors.  The  very  water  of  the 
river  flowed  on,  as  if  it  were  ink.  In  twenty  minutes  from 
the  time  they  had  dragged  their  boat  over  the  bank,  and 
gathered  the  grasses  over  their  backs  and  heads,  the  dark- 
ness was  oppressive.  The  blackness  actually  burdened  the 
air.    Like  the  darkness  of  old,  it  could  be  felt. 

"  I  kalkerlate,"  whispered  the  Trapper,  as  he  put  his  lips 
to  the  ear  of  the  Lad,  "  I  kalkerlate  the  boy  must  be  pritty 
near  the  bend ;  and  if  we  have  made  an  ambush  for  him, 
he'll  sartinly  try  to  ambush  us,  for  he's  great  at  the  paddle 
and  full  of  his  tricks." 

"  Do  you  think,  John  Norton,  that  Henry  knows  we  are 
here  ? " 


354  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  Knows  it !  of  course  he  knows  it,"  whispered  the  old 
man  in  reply.  "  Didn't  I  tell  him  we'd  be  at  this  pint  on 
the  day  and  the  hour  ?  And  aint  the  day  and  the  hour 
come  ?  And  don't  he  know  that  if  I  be  livin'  on  the  'arth 
I'd  be  here  ?  Sartinly  the  boy  knows  we'd  be  here,  and 
he'll  act  on  the  knowledge.    See  if  he  don't." 

"  Do  you  think  he  can  get  his  boat  into  this  pool  without 
our  seeing  him  ? " 

"  Without  seem1  him,  Lad ;  of  course  he  can.  Do  you 
thiDk  he'll  carry  a  bonfire  on  the  eend  of  his  nose  to  tell 
us  he  is  comin'  ?  And  unless  he  luminates  ye  couldn't  see 
him  if  his  boat  lay  in  the  pool  within  length  of  his  paddle 
from  our  eyes.  No,  we  won't  see  him,  for  it's  ag'in  natur' ; 
but  I  do  kalkerlate  to  hear  him ;  for  the  stream  shallers 
below  the  pool,  and  he  has  got  to  pole  his  boat  up  ag'in 
the  current ;  and  I  don't  believe  a  man  can  sink  the  eend 
of  his  paddle  into  the  sand,  on  a  night  as  still  as  this, 
when  my  ear  is  within  four  feet  of  the  stream,  and  I  not 
hear  the  sands  move.  No,  I  sartinly  don't  believe  Henry 
can  do  it.  And  if  he  does  git  his  boat  into  this  pool  with- 
out my  hearin'  him,  he'll  do  what  John  Norton  don't  mean 
to  have  him  do.  Now,  Lad,  if  ye've  got  any  more  questions 
to  ask  ye'd  better  put  'em  off  till  arter  somethin'  has  hap- 
pened ;  for  Henry  has  got  an  ear  like  a  lynx,  and  we  can't 
be  convarsin'  here  in  the  grass,  much,  without  the  boy  hear- 
in'  us;  and  as  he's  got  to  the  bend  by  this  time,  we'd  better 
let  our  tongues  rest  a  while  and  keep  our  ears  and  eyes  as 
open  as  natur'  will  permit." 

All  this  had  been  said  in  the  softest  possible  of  whispers, 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  355 

and  with  the  concluding  word  the  two  men  became  silent 
and  profoundly  attentive. 

Forty  rods  below,  in  the  midst  of  the  impenetrable  dark- 
ness, was  a  boat.  In  the  bow  of  the  boat  was  a  buck ;  at 
the  stern  was  a  man,  —  his  paddle  moving  in  the  water  as 
easily  as  the  tail  of  a  fish,  when  with  lazy  motion,  which 
yields  sufficient  force,  he  holds  himself  steadily  against  an 
easy-going  current.  His  position  was  such  as  to  command 
the  stretch  of  water,  and  the  ledge  in  the  pool  at  the  head 
of  the  stretch.  The  absence  of  any  light  or  signal,  did  not 
cause  him  to  doubt  for  an  instant  the  presence  of  his 
friends,  He  knew  them  too  well  to  suspect  even  for  a 
moment  that  they  had  either  forgotten  the  date  or  their 
pledge,  fixed  and  given  years  before.  He  knew  that  if  John 
Norton  was  living,  the  old  man  was  standing  in  the  dark- 
ness on  the  ledge,  or  nigh  it.  And  he  more  than  half  sus- 
pected, in  the  absence  of  any  signal,  the  trick  that  the  old 
woodsman  was  trying  to  play  on  him.  He  felt  that  the  old 
scout,  whose  paddle  might  be  said  to  have  been  made  from 
silence  itself,  so  noiseless  could  he  make  it  when  stealing 
on  to  game  or  up  to  an  ambushment,  had  in  this  quaint  and 
perfectly  natural  manner,  challenged  him  to  an  exercise  of 
his  skill.  He  knew  as  well  as  the  Trapper  how  delicate 
was  the  undertaking,  and  how  fine  would  be  the  exploit  if 
he  could  accomplish  it.  For  out  of  the  pool  the  water  ran 
with  rippling  swiftness,  and  with  barely  a  foot  of  depth 
over  a  stretch  of  sand,  which,  for  a  dozen  rods,  forbade 
paddling,  and  brought  the  boatman  to  the  necessity  of  pole- 
ing  his  boat  up  against  the  current.    To  do  this  on  so  dark 


356  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

a  night,  in  so  strong  a  current,  and  in  such  shallow  water, 
in  a  way  that  the  ripple  of  the  flowing  tide  against  the 
curved  prow  of  the  boat,  or  the  grating  of  the  sand  against 
the  paddle  blade,  as  it  was  sunk  into  it,  should  not  be  de- 
tected by  the  skilled  ear  that  he  felt  lay  almost  level  with 
the  water,  listening  for  the  sound,  the  young  man  knew 
would  tax  his  skill  to  the  utmost.  But  difficult  as  was  the 
task,  he  determined  to  attempt  it;  and  knowing  the  waters 
well  —  having  pushed  his  boat  over  the  same  stretch,  on 
many  a  night,  when  hunting  in  years  past,  —  he  felt  that 
if  he  were  careful,  the  chances  were  in  his  favor. 

The  reader  can  scarcely  appreciate  how  strongly  the 
young  man  desired  to  place  his  boat,  under  the  cover  of 
intense  darkness,  within  twenty  feet  of  John  Norton's  eyes 
before  the  old  man  should  know  of  his  presence.  With  a 
determination  not  to  lose  his  opportunity  by  any  careless- 
ness on  his  part,  the  young  man  put  a  little  stronger 
pressure  on  his  paddle,  yielding  to  which,  the  boat  began 
to  steal  its  way  up  against  the  stream.  Slowly  he  forced  it 
along  with  a  motion  that  had  for  its  guiding  impulse  the 
patience  of  a  man  who  knows  that  to  do  well  the  thing  he 
intends  to  do,  he  must  do  it  slowly.  Inch  by  inch  the  little 
vessel  glided  up,  until  the  young  man  knew  by  the  increas- 
ing pressure  of  the  current  that  the  bow  had  almost  if  not 
quite  come  to  the  shallows.  Easier  yet  he  pressed  it  for- 
ward, feeling  with  his  paddle  for  the  sand  that  he  knew  he* 
must  soon  touch.  At  last  he  found  it,  and  the  really  diffi- 
cult part  of  the  undertaking  was  now  upon  him.  With  the 
utmost  steadiness  of  motion  and  pressure;   with  a  dex 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  357 

terity  of  wrist  that  few  could  equal ;  with  the  sense  of  feel- 
iDg  performing  the  office  of  sight,  he  gauged  the  varying 
pressure  of  the  current  as  it  eddied  up,  —  now  against  this 
and  now  against-  that  side  of  the  boat, —  the  strength  of 
the  opposing  current,  and  the  quality  of  the  sand  into  which 
he  passed  and  from  which  he  withdrew  his  paddle-blade ; 
slowly,  steadily,  noiselessly,  he  thus  worked. his  way  up- 
ward. 

There  is  a  faith  among  boatmen  that  boats  have  their 
moods ;  that  there  are  days  when  they  mis-behave  and  days 
when  they  do  their  best.  Engineers  have  the  same  feeling 
for  their  engines.  Some  days  they  make  steam,  some  days 
they  won't.  One  trip  they  act  "  beautifully,"  and  the  very 
next  trip  they  act  viciously.  Whether  the  theory  is  true  or 
false,  the  facts  are  undeniable,  and  the  faith  of  boa'tmen  and 
of  engineers  touching  the  matter  is  too  firmly  established  to 
be  shaken.  Whatever  be  the  truth  of  the  case,  we  say, 
Henry  felt  this  night,  as  he  was  working  his  way  against  the 
current  through  the  darkness,  that  his  boat  was  acting 
"  beautifully." 

Perhaps  spirit  is  superior  to  matter,  and  can  assert  its 
superiority  unconsciously.  Perhaps  the  inert  wood  can  be- 
come, as  it  were,  partly  conscious,  and  have  charged  into  it 
something  of  the  vital  quality  that  directs  it.  Be  this  as  it 
may,  as  we  have  said,  Henry  felt  and  said  to  himself,  as  he 
manoevercd  in  the  darkness,  that  the  boat  was  behaving 
finely.  It  faced  the  current  with  the  calm,  easy  determina- 
tion of  the  man  whose  strength  was  pressing  it  upward.  It 
swayed  this  way  and  that  in  obedience  to  the  slightest 


358  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

pressure  from  behind.  If  the  water  shallo  tved,  it  seemed 
to  dread  the  possibility  of  touching  sand,  and  eased  away, 
as  if  in  search  of  deeper  water. 

The  young  man  was  in  his  finest  mood ;  the  subtle  forces 
of  body  and  mind  seemed  to  concentrate  in  union  of  endeav- 
or to  accomplish  the  deed.  His  senses  were  sublimated. 
Ear  and  feeling  made  good  the  lack  of  sight.  Aye,  more 
than  made  it  good,  for  he  found  a  swifter,  more  accurate 
interpretation  of  surrounding  conditions  in  deprivation,  than 
could  have  been  his  in  supply.  The  spirit  of  success  was 
in  him.  He  knew  he  should  accomplish  the  deed.  He  did. 
His  boat  stole  into  the  still  pool  so  gradually,  that  had  it 
been  in  broad  daylight,  even  John  Norton's  eyes  must  have 
looked  twice  and  closely  to  see  that  the  boat  had  actual 
movement,  so  slowly  did  it  pass  its  length  into  the  pool. 

It  entered  the  pool ;  fairly  entered  itj  on  that  side  of  the 
current  which  carried  it  gradually  to  the  right  as  it  passed 
in ;  entered  it,  and  floated  idly  into  the  elbow  made  by  the 
ledge  and  the  bank,  so  that  when  it  stopped,  Henry,  with 
the  point  of  his  paddle,  could  have  parted  the  grass  from 
over  the  heads  of  the  old  man  and  the  Lad,  where  they  lay 
listening,  with  every  sense  alert  for  his  coming.  And  thus, 
in  the  dense  murk  and  the  heavy  gloom,  the  three  men  sat 
almost  within  hand's  reach ;  the  two  listening  for  the  one, 
and  the  one  listening  for  the  two. 

How  long  the  position  would  have  remained  thus,  or 
what  Herbert  would  have  done  had  there  been  no  interrup- 
tion, cannot  be  told ;  for  an  interruption  came,  and  of  a  char- 
acter which  made  the  revelation  instantaneous.    Through 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  359 

the  gloom  of  night  the  forces  of  Nature  had  been  martial- 
ing  for  display.  The  great  bank  of  clouds  which  had  en- 
veloped the  sun  at  its  setting,  had  moved  up  through  the 
darkness  and  enlarged  its  borders  until  its  upper  point  had 
been  pushed  half  way  to  the  zenith,  and  its  extremities  al- 
most touched  either  pole  of  the  horizon.  Nature  had  made 
her  ambush  as  truly  as  man,  and  uncovered  it  with  start- 
ling energy.  For  suddenly,  out  of  the  invisible  clouds  a 
shaft  of  condensed  fire  leapt,  that  lanced  through  the  gloom 
from  west  to  east — cut  it  in  twain,  and  set  the  black  halves 
of  the  divided  atmosphere  aflame.  If  the  darkness  had 
been  one  vast  body  of  percussion,  and  the  god  of  fire  had 
smote  it  with  his  hammer,  it  could  not  have  exploded  in 
fiercer  light.  The  hazy  sky ;  the  tremendous  clouds  piled 
in  vast  convolutions  in  the  firmament ;  the  forest,  the  river, 
the  ledge,  the  boatman  and  the  boat,  all  on  the  instant 
stood  revealed  vividly  distinct.  The  prolonged  flash  and 
flame  had  not  faded  away,  when  the  Old  Trapper  leapt  from 
the  grass  on  the  bank  in  which  he  lay  hidden. 

"  Ye've  did  it,  Henry  !  Yis,  ye  sartinly  have  did  it!  Ye 
have  fetched  yer  boat  through  the  ripples  and  over  the 
sands,  while  the  ear  of  a  man  whose  life  has  been  saved 
more'n  once  by  his  hearin',  was  within  four  feet  of  the  wa- 
ter. And  ye've  drifted  yer  boat  within  two  yards  of  his 
ears  and  he  never  knowed  ye'd  come.  Ye  was  born  too 
late,  boy ;  for  yer  gifts  pint  to  the  trail  and  the  scrimmage, 
and  the  ambushment ;  and  if  ye'd  lived  in  the  old  war  time 
ye'd  had  somethin'  to  bring  out  the  stuff  that's  in  ye.  And 
a  good  comrade  ye  would  have  been  to  consort  with.    No, 


3G0  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

don't  come  ashore,  boy,  but  shove  up  the  stream  and  put 
yer  best  licks  iuto  the  paddle,  for  the  storm  be  eoinin',  and 
we  must  be  gittin'  home.  I  sartiuly  long  to  take  ye  by  the 
hand,  but  it's  comfort  enough  to  know  that  ye  be  in  the  land 
of  the  livin'  —  which  I  eenainost  doubted,  —  and  that  ye 
be  here  in  the  woods  ag'in.  Ye'll  find  the  lodge  on  the  big 
bank  to  the  right  as  ye  enter  the  lake,  and  the  pups  will 
be  glad  to  see  ye.  So  push  on,  boy,  and  be  lively,  and  me 
and  the  Lad  will  foller  on.  I  doubt  if  ye  git  there  much 
afore  us." 

The  sound  of  Henry's  stroke  showed  that  his  boat  was 
rods  away  before  the  Trapper's  sentence  was  concluded, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  the  Trapper  and  the  Lad  had  launched 
their  boat ;  and  lashing  the  rod  to  its  place,  and  putting 
the  fish  in  the  bottom,  they  entered  it  and  started  up  the 
stream. 

It  took  but  a  few  moments  for  Henry  to  reach  the  lake, 
and  in  a  minute  more  he  ran  the  boat  ashore  on  the  soft 
sand  that  made  a  little  beach  at  the  water's  edge  of  the 
bank,  and  lifted  itself  sharply  some  forty  feet  upwards. 
This  he  mounted,  and  seizing  an  armful  of  brush  and  dried 
boughs  that  lay  by  the  fire-place,  in  which  the  coals  still 
glowed,  he  threw  them  on  to  the  bed  of  embers,  and  in  an 
instant  a  flame  leapt  up. 

Even  before  the  flame  rose  into  the  air  the  two  hounds 
were  tugging  at  their  chains  at  the  mouth  of  their  kennel 
in  the  wildest  ecstasy  of  delight.  By  eye  and  nose  alike 
they  had  recognized  the  comer ;  and  as  Henry  approached 
them  —  which  he   did  on  the  instant,    with  such  hearty 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  361 

words  of  greeting  as  a  hunter,  after  long  absence,  gives  on 
return  to  his  favorites, — the  hounds  poured  into  the  silent 
air  of  night  their  rejoicing  notes.  They  jumped,  they  stood 
erect,  they  put  their  paws  upon  his  shoulders,  they  kissed 
Ins  face  and  hands,  they  bayed  their  gladsome  welcome  out 
so  luud  and  strong  that  the  shores  resounded  with  the  cry  ; 
and  even  the  mountains,  with  a  hundred  imitative  echoes, 
hailed  Henry's  return. 

Having  received  the  hounds'  happy  salutation,  Henry 
turned  toward  the  fire ;  and  as  he  came  to  it  on  one  side, 
the  Old  Trapper,  having  clomb  the  bank  from  the  beach, 
approached  it  on  the  other.  Without  a  word  the  two  men 
joined  their  hands,  and  for  a  moment  each  looked  into  the 
face  of  the  other,  with  that  affectionate  curiosity  with  which 
friends  that  have  been  parted  gaze  at  each  other  when  they 
meet,  studying  the  changes  which  the  intervening  years 
have  wrought.  Nothing  is  more  touching  than  such  a  greet- 
ing. The  gaze  means  so  much  and  suggests  so  much.  The* 
eyes  have  their  own  language  then,  and  many  an  interroga- 
tion is  asked  and  answered  by  their  glance. 

Thus  the  two  men  stood  gazing  at  each  other  in  the  light 
of  the  blazing  fire,  so  intently  that  neither  noticed  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Lad.  "  Henry,"  at  last  said  the  old  man,  "  I 
be  glad  to  see  ye  ag'in  in  the  land  of  the  livin'.  Twice  afore 
have  we  waited  yer  comin'  at  the  rock,  and  twice  have  we 
camped  on  this  bank  a  week  waitin'  ye,  and  ye  didn't  come. 
And  when  the  sun  went  down  to-night  and  ye  didn't  come, 
I  eenamost  thought  I  should  see  ye  no  more ;  and  the  crack 
of  yer  piece  lifted  a  heavy  load  from  my  feelin's,  and  made 


362  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

my  sperits  frisky.  Yis,  the  years  have  changed  ye,  boy,  for 
they've  sartinly  added  some  lines  to  yer  face,  and  mixed 
the  gray  in  yer  hair,  and  gin  ye  a  kind  of  sober  look  that 
shows  that  they  were  filled  with  labor,  and  that  the  Lord 
didn't  altogether  keep  smTerin'  out  of  'em.  But  ban-in' 
this  ye  are  the  same,  onless  ye  be  fatter  by  a  trifle.  But 
the  city,  I  have  heerd,  is  a  famous  place  to  make  fat,  and  a 
mouth  at  the  oars  will  sweat  ye  down  to  the  size  that  natur' 
ordered  for  ye." 

"  I  can  truly  say,"  said  Herbert,  speaking  iu  reply,  "  that 
I  am  as  glad  to  be  with  you  again  as  you  are  to  have  me. 
And  you,  John  Norton,  have  changed  next  to  nothing  since 
we  parted.  Your  eye  is  as  bright,  your  grip  as  strong  as 
ever,  and  I  doubt  if  your  head  has  added  a  gray  hair  to  it." 

"  I  dunno  about  that,  Henry ;  no  I  duuno  about  that,"  re- 
turned the  old  man,  while  a  look  of  humor  smoothed  in 
part  the  carved  lines  of  his  countenance  and  sharpened  the 
gleam  of  his  eye,  "  the  grip  is  all  right  yit,  for  sartin,  and 
the  sights  look  open  and  clean  as  they  orter  when  I  put 
my  eye  into  'em,  with  a  buck  or  a  bit  of  fur  that  I  want,  or 
a  duck  or  a  partridge  for  that  matter,  at  the  other  end  of 
'em.  But  the  white  hairs  be  comin'  for  sartin,  for  a  man  is 
like  a  tree,  and  the  frost  teches  the  top  of  him  fust ;  and  a 
mortal  that's  lived  as  long  as  I  have  on  the  'arth  has  lived 
through  the  spring  and  summer  of  his  days,  and  has  come 
to  that  season  whose  days  be  short,  and  whose  nights  be 
long,  and  whose  frosts  be  many  and  cold.  But  the  Lord  is 
sartinly  gracious  to  me,  and  it  looks  as  if  my  days  would 
be  lengthened  out  beyend  the  ordinary  life  of  my  kind. 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  363 

But  bless  my  soul !  here  stands  the  Lad,  and  we  haven't 
given  him  a  chance  to  greet  ye." 

It  was  with  but  little  less  feeling  than  that  which  char- 
acterized the  meeting  of  Herbert  and  the  Trapper,  that  the 
two  young  men  greeted  each  other.  Long  and  heartily  they 
shook  each  other's  hand,  and  a  goodly  sight  they  presented 
as  they  stood  in  their  youth  and  manly  vigor  facing  each 
other ;  their  countenances  lighted  up  with  friendship  and 
with  smiles. 

"Do  ye  see,  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper,  "how  the  Lad 
has  thickened  up  sence  ye  seed  him  ?  I  can't  say  that  he's 
actally  pussy  yit,  but  he's  bigger  'n  he  was  round  the  waist, 
and,  as  I  tell  him,  he's  only  jest  begun  to  grow.  He  looks 
a  leetle  lank  to-night,  for  he  and  me  come  through  from 
the  Eacquette  sence  ten  in  the  mornin',  and  we  haven't 
eaten  a  morsel  sence  breakfast.  But  arter  he?s  had  supper, 
if  the  buck  down  there  in  yer  boat  is  a  good  sized  un,  so 
he  can  feel  he  can  eat  enough  without  robbin'  us,  if  ye'* 
inspect  him  ye'll  see  that  his  feedin'  has  been  of  the  right 
sort  sence  ye  left ;  and,  if  nothing  happens,  I'll  have  him 
in  good  condition  in  a  year  or  two  more." 

"  I  don't  care,"  said  the  Lad,  "  if  you  do  make  fun  of  my 
eating,  for  I  know  you  love  to  see  me  eat ;  and  I  think  the 
best  thing  we  can  do  is  to  get  some  tenderloin  steak  out  of 
that  buck  in  Henry's  boat,  and  get  supper  soon  as  we  can ; 
for  the  storm  will  be  here  by  and  by,  and  I  don't  like  to  eat 
in  the  storm." 

"  I  agree  with  the  Lad,"  said  Herbert.  "  I  ate  breakfast 
at  seven,  and  I  have  taken  nothing  but  a  biscuit  and  a 


364  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

lemon  since,  and  I  doubt  if  I  was  ever  hungrier  in  my  life." 
"Well,  well,"  said  the  old  Trapper,  laughing,  "you  and 
the  Lad  tend  to  the  buck,  and  I'll  get  the  tish  and  flapjacks 
ready,  and  if  there  be  a  tater  left  in  the  bag  we'll  have  it 
biled ;  for  if  there  ever  was  a  time,  Lad,  for  you  and  me 
to  celebrate,  it's  to-night,  for  Henry  is  here ;  and  if  there 
be  a  tater,  he  shall  have  it,  for  sartin." 

The  quickness  with  which  a  meal  can  be  prepared  i^  the 
woods  by  three  men,  when  provisions  are  plenty,  the  lire 
well  a-going,  especially  if  the  men  are  hungry,  would  be  a 
revelation  to  most  of  the  cooks  at  our  aristocratic  hotels. 
Not  more  than  thirty  minutes,  at  the  most,  had  passed 
before  the  three  men  were  seated  round  their  bark  table, 
which  was  moved  up  within  the  circle  of  the  clear  firelight, 
and  discussing  the  viands  with  appetites  whose  sharpness 
forbade,  for  several  minutes  at  least,  conversation. 

"  One  thing  is  sartin,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  put  the 
second  steak  on  Henry's  plate,  and  followed  it  with  the 
remaining  potatoe,  "  one  thing  is  sartin,  ye  have  changed 
somethin'  in  yer  looks,  but  ye  haven't  changed  a  bit  in  yer 
appetite.  If  ye  do  manage  to  git  round  that  plateful,  and 
then  dip  into  the  cakes,  hearty  like,  and  fill  in  the  chinks 
with  some  of  the  fish,  ye'll  have  a  feelin'  of  fullness  in  ye 
that'll  be  comfortin'.  It'll  be  nip  and  tuck  atween  you  and 
the  Lad  arter  this,  and  I'm  mighty  glad  ye  can  run  together, 
as  we  say  of  the  dogs,  for  yer  mouths  are  jest  alike,  and  the 
way  they  open  and  shet  as  the  victuals  go  in  is  enough  to 
make  an  old  man  wish  he  was  younger ;  for  the  years  that 
add  to  the  head  take  from  the  stomach,  and  the  aged, 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  365 

whether  it  be  dog  or  mortal,  eats  sparin'; "  and  the  old  man 
moved  his  rude  stool  back  a  foot  or  two  from  the  table, 
and  gazed  at  his  young  companions  with  a  look  in  which 
gravity  and  humor  were  equally  mingled,  as  if  the  spectacle 
of  their  heartiness,  while  it  stirred  the  sense  of  the 
ludicrous  in  him,  called  up  at  the  same  time  reminiscences 
of  bis  own  earlier  days. 

It  is  only  in  the  interest  of  accurate  statement  to  say, 
that  when  the  young  men  moved  their  stools  back  from 
the  board,  steak,  fish,  and  cakes  had  alike  disappeared, 
even  to  the  last  scrap. 

"Well,"  said  the  Trapper,  "I'm  raaly  thankful  that  the 
plates  be  left,  for  the  dishes  be  handy,  and  I  don't  think 
they  would  have  set  wuth  a  cent  on  yer  stomachs  if 
ye'd  eaten  'em.  Lord,  what  appetites  the  young  have! 
The  sight  of  yer  eaten'  takes  me  back  fifty  year,  and  brings 
up  many  a  feastin'  I  had  in  the  years  that  be  gone,  both 
alone  and  with  comrades  that  slept  and  eat  on  the  trail 
with  me.  The  comrades  be  scattered  now,  and  the  greater 
part  of  them  be  gone  forever,  but  natur'  is  the  same  to-day 
as  it  was  then,  and  tho  sight  of  yer  eatin'  has  called  up  a 
hundred  faces  that  I  knowed  when  I  was  a  young  man 
myself.  Come,  let's  clear  away  the  table,  and  pile  on  the 
hard  wood,  for  the  thunder  is  rollin'  in  the  mountains, 
and  the  rain  will  be  comin'  afore  long.  I  never  knowed  a 
hotter  day  than  this,  and  the  'arth  will  shake  under  the 
lodge  afore  mornin'." 

In  a  few  moments  the  dishes  were  washed,  the  table 
removed,  and  the  greenwood  logs  so  placed  that,  while 


366 


ADIRONDACK   TALES. 


the  lower  edges  lay  in  contact  with  the  glowing  coals 
underneath,  the  upper  sides  made  a  protection  like  a  roof 
for  the  lire.  The  three  men  stretched  themselves  in  easy 
recumbent  postures  at  the  entrance  of  the  lodge,  and 
awaited  the  coming  of  the  storm.  The  conversation  was 
of  a  character  naturally  suggested  to  the  mind  by  the  grand 
and  indeed  sublime  surroundings. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  THUNDER  STORM. 

"I  have  called  forth  the  mutinous  winds, 
And  'twixt  the  green  sea  and  the  azured  vault 
Set  roaring  war  :   to  the  dread  rattling  thunder 
Have  I  given  fire,  and  rifted  Jove's  stout  oak, 
With  his  own  holt." —  Shakespeare. 

rpHE  forces  of  the  storm  were  now  so  far  developed  as  to 
have  fairly  come  into  action.  The  earth  and  sky  were 
alike  electric,  —  the  air  and  ground  thoroughly  charged  with 
the  subtle  fluids.  The  atmosphere  was  ready  to  ignite  at 
every  point,  and  the  explosions  followed  each  other  in  vol- 
leys. The  lightning  was  incessant ;  it  ran  in  fiery  rivers  down 
the  declivities  of  the  firmament,  emptying  itself  in  the  far 
distance.  It  cut  its  fiery  zigzags  hither  and  yon,  so  lurid 
and  fiercely  hot  that  the  eyes  ached  as  they  beheld.  It 
shot  its  bolts  horizontally  through  the  air,  which  exploded 
ever  and  anon  like  powerful  rockets;  the  very  water  burnt 
with  a  blue  light,  as  if  the  electric  fluid  floated  like  oil  upon 
its  surface.  There  were  flashes  of  darkness,  but  the  illumi- 
nation was  almost  instant,  as  if  the  body  of  the  air  itself 
were  combustible,  and  incendiary  imps  were  flinging  blazing 
brands  through  it. 
As  the  old  Trapper  had  predicted,  the  earth  was  tremu- 


368  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

lous.  Its  solidity  was  assaulted  with  such  violence  that  its 
subterranean  pillars  trembled  through  all  their  mighty 
shafts,  and  shook  on  their  broad  basis.  The  crust  of  tha 
globe  was  jarred  in  its  every  particle.  Whatever  substance, 
earth,  rock,  or  log,  the  spectator  occupied,  he  felt  the  grains 
and  fibers  jump  as  the  concussions  ripped  above  him.  The 
cloud,  or  clouds,  for  the  whole  firmament  was  now  pos- 
sessed, brought  out  by  the  lightning's  blaze  to  plainest 
vision,  were  awful  to  look  upon.  The  heaven  was  in  tumult; 
embodied  violences  tore  through  it ;  huge  convoluted  masses 
of  rolling  darkness  hung  overhead ;  cumuli  were  rolled  upon 
cumuli ;  white  scuds  sped,  like  vapory  ghosts  in  terror,  in 
all  directions;  the  winds  chased  them  at  random;  the 
atmosphere  was  in  anarchy;  ungovernable  forces  rioted 
overhead;  the  world  trembled  as  with  fright,  and  one 
might  almost  imagine  that  the  stars  would  be  shaken  from 
their  orbits,  and  consummate  the  universal  disorder  with 
universal  ruin.  The  mountains  bellowed;  the  ravines 
belched  noises ;  reverberations  from  either  side  of  the  lake 
met  in  mid  career  and  swallowed  each  other  up ;  the  minor 
echoes  were  struck  dumb  in  their  leafy  doorways,  and  now 
and  tben,  for  a  single  instant,  an  awful  silence  reigned, 
which,  in  an  instant  more,  burst  at  its  very  center  with 
tremendous  explosions.  The  face  of  the  Lad  showed  white 
in  the  glare  of  the  lightning.  Herbert  watched  the  exhibi- 
tion with  an  eye  educated  by  science  to  note  cause  and 
effect.  The  dogs  cowered,  trembling,  in  their  kennel. 
They  shook  with  the  ague  of  fright.  The  countenance  of 
the  Trapper  was  grave,  with  the  gravity  of  a  man  devoid 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  369 

of  fear,  but  profoundly  impressed  with  the  majesty  of  the 
scene. 

Up  to  this  point  the  storm  had  been  a  "  dry  storm."  Not 
a  drop  of  rain  had  fallen,  nor  had  the  atmospheric  convul- 
sions reached  the  earth.  The  winds  were  "  running  high," 
as  the  Old  Trapper  said ;  they  were  at  war  with  the  clouds, 
and  amid  the  clouds  they  rioted.  But  signs  were  not  lack- 
ing which  revealed  to  a  woodsman's  eye  that  the  commo- 
tion was  descending,  and  that  ere  long  the  earth  would  be 
the  scene  of  the  same  confusion  which  thus  far  had  pre- 
vailed only  overhead. 

"  I've  lived,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  u  more'n  threescore 
year  in  the  woods,  and  amid  the  scenes  of  Natur',  and  I 
have  seed  aud  heerd  most  of  the  sights  and  sounds  that 
lam  mortals  their  weakness,  but  I've  never  seed  lightnin' 
that  fixed  itself  on  the  eyeballs  hotter  than  this  does  to- 
night, nor  heerd  thunder  jar  the  'arth  under  me  more  ar- 
nest-like  than  these  claps  do.  I  should  think,  Henry,  that 
the  very  underpiuin'  was  givin'  out  under  me,  and  that  the 
Lord  was  eenamost  shakin'  his  own  buildin'  to  pieces  by 
the  way  that  the  ground  quivers  as  the  peals  roll  over- 
head." 

"  I  never  heard  such  thunder  myself,"  said  Henry,  "  but 
once  before,  and  that  was  eight  years  ago  on  the  Eacquette, 
and  I  am  sure  I  never  saw  lightning  so  fierce  and  hot,  even 
;hen." 

"  I  doubt  if  ye  ever  did,  boy,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  for 
the  air  seems  to  burn  as  if  it  was  tinder.  Lord  1  what  a 
flash  that  was.    It  made  my  eyes  fairly  shrivel;  and  there's 


370  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

sartiuly  one  pine  less  on  yon  hill,  for  I  saw  the  bolt  strike 
it;  and  when  lightnin'  hits  a  pine  it's  apt  to  make  kindlin' 
wood  out  of  it  from  top  to  bottom.  I've  sometimes  thought 
that  even  the  Lord  got  careless  and  wasteful-like  at  times, 
when  I've  seed  the  pines  and  the  spruces  that  he  had  ripped 
open  without  cause.  I  never  sunk  an  axe  myself  into  the 
stump  of  a  tree  yit  that  didn't  show  signs  of  dyin',  or  else 
was  too  crooked  to  have  any  right  to  live ;  and  I've  won- 
dered that  the  Lord  didn't  exercise  more  jedgment  in  his 
choppin',  for  I  never  seed  a  dead  tree  or  a  crooked  un  that 
his  lightnin'  struck  yit,  and  it  sartinly  don't  seem  jedicious 
to  rip  open  the  best  trees  for  sport,  when  the  bad  uns  do 
jest  as  well.  But  I  s'pose  he  has  reason  on  his  side  if  we 
mortals  could  see  it,  or  else  he  gits  playful-like  now  and 
then,  and  thiugs  happen  that  wouldn't  happen  if  he  was  in 
sober  'arnest." 

"  You  don't  think  that  the  Lord  is  really  playful,  do  you, 
John  Norton  ? "  said  the  Lad,  moving  his  seat  up  nearer  to 
the  old  man,  as  if  he  thought  a  greater  degree  of  safety 
could  be  found  in  close  personal  contact,  than  in  the  edge 
of  the  firelight  where  he  had  been  sitting. 

"  I  sartinly  do,  Lad ;  yis,  I  sartinly  think  there  must  be  a 
good  deal  of  playfulness  in  the  Maker,  for  I  don't  see  how 
he  could  git  the  idee  of  makin'  his  creeturs  so  playful  and 
frisky  like  if  there  wasn't  plenty  of  fun  in  him  somewhere. 
Now  when  I  have  laid  in  the  grass  and  watched  the  beavers 
and  seen  the  cunnin'  of  the  creeturs,  and  when  I've  stretched 
myself  over  a  ledge  and  seed  the  little  wolf  whelps  caper 
and  cut  up  their  antics  at  the  mouth  of  the  den,  laughin' 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  371 

till  my  eyes  watered  at  the  tricks  of  the  leetle  woolly 
scamps,  aud  recollected  that  the  Lord  made  'em  and  put 
everything  in  them  that  is  in  'em  except  their  bite — yis,  ex- 
cept their  bite — I've  sartinly  felt  that  there  must  be  a  good 
deal  of  playfulness  in  himself  or  he  never  would  have 
thought  of  makin'  sech  playful  creeturs." 

"  What  do  you  think  about  the  panthers ! "  said  Herbert. 

u  Henry,"  said  the  old  man,  as  he  rose  to  a  sitting  pos- 
ture with  deliberate  earnestness,  "  I've  thought  a  good  deal 
about  them  panthers,  and  wondered  how  they  come  to  be 
made  anyway,  for  they  sartinly  be  the  most  cowardly, 
sneakin',  savage  animils  that  runs  in  the  woods..  And  I 
never  seed  a  good  thing  in  one  of  'em,  and  I  don't  believe 
that  the  Lord  ever  made  a  single  one  of  the  pesky  things." 

"  Why  how  do  you  think  they  were  made,  then  ?"  retorted 
Herbert. 

"  Made  !"  said  tthe  (bid  man,  '"I  think  the  devil  made  'em ! 
Yis,  they  be  the  devil's  own  children,  them  panthers,  for. 
they  be  jest  like  him.  They  won't  look  ye  in  the  eye  and 
they  won't  fight  ye  if  ye  have  a  weepon ;  and  they  are  al- 
ways watchin'  to  take  ye  onawares ;  and  there's  no  marcy 
in  'em,  and  they  kill  for  the  love  of  killin'.  I  was  trailin' 
last  year  near  the  head  waters  of  Cold  Eiver,  yender,  and  I 
heerd  a  great  bleatiu',  and  I  scooted  up  on  my  snow-shoes 
toward  the  sound,  till  I  run  acrost  a  yard  with  a  dozen  deer 
in  it,  and  I  found  what  I  thought  I  should  find  :  an  old  pan- 
ther at  work  there,  and  he  had  killed  five  of  the  innercent 
creeturs,  and  his  teeth  was  in  the  throat  of  another —  a 
two  year  old  buck,  —  and  I  drawed  on  him,  and  I  larnt  him 


372  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

a  lesson  of  marcy  quick  as  powder  could  burn.  Yis,  I 
pulled  both  triggers  at  once,  and  the  bullets  took  him 
square  over  the  eyes,  and  they  lifted  the  scalp  of  the  var- 
mint ;  and  I  never  felt  better  than  when  I  tore  the  skin  off 
from  his  carcass  and  flung  it  out  on  the  snow  for  the  ravens 
to  pick.  No,  no,  Henry,  the  Lord  never  made  a  panther, 
I'm  sartin  on  that." 

"  What  is  that  1 "  said  the  Lad,  suddenly. 

"  Ye'll  know  what  it  is  afore  long,  Lad,"  said  the  old  man, 
after  a  moment's  listening.  "  It  be  the  might  of  the  storm 
on  the  other  side  of  the  mountain.  It's  nigh  on  to  twenty 
mile  away,  but  ye  can  hear  it  comin'  as  if  the  Lord's  own 
feet  was  tramplin'  down  the  trees.  Yis,  the  winds  have 
settled  to  the  'arth  and  the  trees  are  bein'  tested  as  mortals 
be  tested  in  the  jedgment.  The  rotten  hearted  uns  and 
them  whose  roots  be  weak,  must  go  down  when  the  breath 
of  His  power  and  His  wrath  blow  ag'iu  'em.  Hark !  and  ye'll 
hear  how  small  is  the  strength  of  the  'arth  when  the  wrath 
of  its  Maker  be  stirred." 

The  three  men  became  silent.  Their  senses  turned  to- 
ward and  concentrated  on  the  approaching  storm.  Dull, 
heavy,  monotonous,  the  dreadful  sound  came  on.  The  far- 
off,  portentious  murmur  grew  and  swelled,  until  it  became 
a  roar.  It  moved  up  the  western  slope  of  the  mountain 
range  until  it  reached  the  crest,  and  without  pausing  for  a 
moment,  came  tearing  downward  with  accelerated  speed. 
The  lightnings  lit  its  path  as  if  to  make  more  dreadful  its 
approach  by  the  revelation  of  its  power.  The  eyes  of  the 
three  men  were  lifted  toward  the  western  ridge.    The  air, 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  373 

for  miles  along  the  front  of  its  advance,  was  thick  with  the 
evidences  of  its  violence.  Leaves,  moss,  tufts  of  branches, 
and  even  great  boughs,  wrenched  from  swaying  tree-tops 
and  hurled  upward,  were  flying  overhead.  Soon  individual 
noises  broke  the  monotony  of  the  terrible  uproar.  The 
crack  "of  mighty  trunks  snapped  shortly  off,  fifty  feet  from 
their  roots;  the  crash  of  rending  wood  as  the  fierce  suction 
wrenched  giant  branches  from  their  fastenings ;  the  rush  of 
descending  tree-tops  as  they  swept  through  the  air  in  act  of 
tailing ;  the  heavy  thud  as  they  struck  the  earth  with  re- 
verberating thump ;  the  shriek  and  fierce  whistling  of  winds 
tearing  onward  in  mad  career  —  thus  came  the  storm.  It 
was  as  if  the  king  of  tumult  himself  had  harnessed  his 
steeds  and  mounted  his  chariot,  whose  wheels  in  revolution 
drowned  even  the  thunder's  peal. 

As  the  storm  came  on  and  the  evidences  of  its  terrific 
violence  accumulated,  the  Lad,  perhaps  unconsciously,  had 
crept  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  Trapper,  until  his  frightened 
countenance  was  within  a  foot  of  the  old  man's  calm,  up- 
lifted face,  and  his  hands  were  actually  clutching  his  gar- 
ments. Henry,  iu  his  excitement,  had  risen,  and  unable  to 
restrain  himself  longer,  exclaimed :  — 

"  John  Norton,  I  never  saw  anything  like  that ! " 
The  old  man  never  moved  a  muscle ;  his  eyes  never  wan- 
dered from  the  line  of  the  storm's  approach.  His  expres- 
sion was  one  in  which  curiosity,  awe  and  calculation  were 
equally  mingled.  The  terrific  violence  was  within  a  half 
mile  of  the  spot  where  he  sat,  and  the  air  above  his  head 
was  already  thickeniug  with  the  fragments  which  the  upper 


374  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

winds  were  bearing  forward  in  the  advance,  when  he  rose 
suddenly  to  his  feet.  He  seized  the  Lad  by  the  arm,  and 
swinging  round  he  laid  the  other  hand  on  Herbert's  shoul- 
der and  shouted  —  for  the  uproar  had  now  fairly  reached 
them,  and  ordinary  utterance  could  not  be  heard :  — 

"  The  strength  of  the  storm  be  beyend  mortal  measure- 
ment, and  this  spot  is  not  safe.  We  must  take  to  the  bank 
and  burrow  into  the  sand  under  the  ledge.  Cut  the  dogs 
loose,  Henry,  that  the  pups  may  find  safety.  Git  yer  fiddle, 
Lad,  while  I  git  the  guns  and  the  powder.  The  lodge  may 
stand,  for  I  built  it  myself,  and  the  withes  round  the  timbers 
be  strong,  but  if  the  wind  gits  under  it,  it  won't  tech  the 
'arth  this  side  the  head  waters  of  the  Hudson.  Be  lively, 
boys,  for  the  Lord  is  in  'arnest,  and  it  behooves  mortals  to 
be  active." 

In  an  instant,  as  it  were,  his  command  had  been  obeyed, 
and  the  three  men,  with  the  dogs,  the  gun,  the  violin,  and 
the  boats  —  which  Henry  had  seized,  one  with  either  hand, 
and  dragged  with  him,  as  he  struck  the  beach  at  the  foot  of 
the  bank  — were  collected  under  the  ledge. 

It  was  well  that  they  had  bestirred  themselves,  for  they 
were  barely  at  the  spot  which  the  Trapper  had  designated 
as  the  point  of  safety,  when  the  line  of  the  storm  swept 
over  them.  The  ledge  was  of  such  a  nature  that  it  inclined 
outward  from  the  base  at  an  angle  sufficient  to  protect 
them  both  from  the  plunging  rain,  which  suddenly  de- 
scended in  torrents,  and  from  the  falling  fragments  which 
were  hurtling  through  the  air.  The  huge  bank  out  of  which 
it  jutted,  gave  abundant  protection  from  the  tornado  itself! 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  375 

And  thus  kneeling  on  the  sand  with  the  ledge  projecting 
above  them,  and  the  huge  bank  rising  behind  they  were 
able  to  observe  the  movement  of  the  tempest  from  a  point 
of  observation  perfectly  secure.  The  violence  of  the  wind 
was  astonishing.  It  tore  its  way  through  the  beach  grove 
that  nestled  in  the  swale  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  with 
such  fierceness  as  to  virtually  destroy  it.  In  the  morning 
half  the  trees  were  found  prostrate,  and  the  branches  of 
those  that  remained  were  sadly  wrenched  and  disfigured. 
It  struck  the  water  with  the  force  of  an  actual  concussion. 
It  cut  grooves  through  it,  scooped  depressions  along  its 
surface,  and  blew  the  edges  away  in  flying  froth.  Whirl- 
winds darted  downward  and  spun  themselves  along  the 
water  with  a  revolution  so  swift  that  the  suction  fairly  lifted 
it  in  spirals.  The  sands  on  the  beach  jumped  upward  and 
were  sent  hissing  through  the  air;  the  marsh-grass  and 
reeds  along  the  shore  flattened  and  lay  prone.  The  wind 
was  too  fierce  for  waves  —  the  crests  of  the  growing  undu- 
lations were  sheered  off  as  if  the  wind  had  an  edge  keen  as 
a  knife;  the  under  halves  were  pressed  downward  and  the 
upper  portions  blown  upward  through  the  air  in  mist.  For 
ten  minutes,  perhaps,  the  tempest  kept  the  full  proportions 
of  its  fury,  and  then  the  winds  sank  perceptibly,  although 
they  still  blew  with  the  velocity  of  a  gale.  The  lake  began 
to  roll  in  great  waves,  their  crests  white  as  if  edged  with 
dry  snow ;  and  the  hollow  intervals,  deep  and  dark,  were 
streaked  with  frothy  lines.  The  billows  swelled,  curved, 
and  roared.  They  splashed  and  hissed  as  they  seethed 
along.    They  rolled  tumultuously  one  after  the  other,  as  if 


376  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

in  mad  pursuit  and  madder  flight,  pursuer  and  pursued.  At 
times  the  rain  fell  in  torrents.  It  burst  out  of  the  clouds 
as  if  the  reservoirs  of  the  upper  air  had  broken  their  bounds 
and  poured  their  deluge  bodily  downward.  At  other  times 
it  ceased  and  for  minutes  not  a  drop  would  fall.  The  storm 
was  passing  eastward.  The  thunder,  though  incessant,  was 
less  concussive ;  and  the  lightning,  though  vivid  and  fierce, 
flashed  on  the  lake  from  a  farther  distance.  The  uproar 
had  now  so  far  subsided  that  with  a  little  extra  effort  con- 
versation could  be  carried  on. 

"  It  is  a  dreadful  blow  for  sartin,"  said  the  old  man,  "  and 
mighty  leetle  choppin'  will  me  and  the  Lad  have  to  do  for 
the  lodge  fire  this  winter,  for  I  heerd  the  wind  comin' 
through  the  beech  grove  in  the  swale  as  I  dove  down  the 
bank,  and  I  know  by  the  sound  that  it  did  a  good  deal  of 
cuttin'.  I  sartinly  hope  the  lodge  has  stood,  for  it's  been 
my  home  off  and  on  for  twelve  year.  And  a  man  gits  used 
to  a  shanty  as  he  does  to  his  garments,  and  it  takes  some 
time  afore  he  can  git  used  to  the  change.  I  hope  no  man  is 
on  the  lake  to-night,  for  there's  nothing  but  a  canoe  that 
could  live  in  that  sea,  and  there  aint  many  paddles  in  the 
woods  that  could  manage  one  jediciously  in  sech  wild  water. 
A  man  must  be  a  fool  or  crazy  to  ventur'  out "  — 

"  What's  that !  "  screamed  the  Lad. 

The  voice  of  his  exclamation  was  so  sharp  and  piercing, 
and  so  suddenly  ejaculated,  that  Herbert  and  the  Trapper 
fairly  started. 

"  Where  is  it,  Lad  ?  where  is  it  ? "  exclaimed  the  Trapper, 
as  he  peered  into  the  darkness.  "  Wait  for  a  flash  and  pint 
it  out  when  it  comes." 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  377 

For  a  moment  the  three  men  stood  waiting,  while  through 
the  darkness  the  white  crests  of  the  billows  alone*  showed 
themselves,  and  out  of  the  gloom  the  thunder  of  their  roar 
harshly  ascended,  and  then  the  flash  came. 

It  needed  not  the  finger -of  the  Lad  to  point  out  the  ob- 
ject, the  sight  of  which  had  opened  his  mouth  with  the 
startling  cry,  for  there  in  full  view,  a  mile  from  the  shore, 
in  the  midst  of  the  rolling  waves,  and  lifted  on  the  very 
crest  of  a  billow  was  a  boat,  and  in  it,  vividly  outlined,  was 
seen  standing  the  form  of  a  man  with  his  arms  outstretched 
and  his  hands  and  face  lifted  to  the  heavens. 

"  Crazy  John ! " 

The  words  were  heaved  from  the  very  depths  of  the 
Trapper's  chest,  and  as  he  spoke  them  the  flash  died  away, 
and  the  vision  disappeared  in  the  darkness,  and  again 
through  the  gloom  only  the  white  flash  of  the  waves  could 
be  seen,  while  out  of  the  darkness  sounded  heavy  and 
solemn  the  roar  of  their  dirge-like  roll. 

"  I  will  save  him  !  "  said  the  Lad,  and  he  laid  hold  of  the 
bow  of  his  boat  to  drag  it  into  the  water. 

"  Stop  where  ye  be ! "  exclaimed  the  Trapper,  as  he  seized 
the  other  side  of  the  boat  and  held  it  with  so  strong  a  grip 
that  the  Lad  could  not  move  it  an  inch.  "  Stop  where  ye 
be,  Lad,  and  leave  this  job  to  the  plannin'  of  an  older  head 
than  yourn.  The  man  must  be  saved  for  sartin,  if  it  be  with- 
in mortal  power ;  for  though  the  fit  be  on  him  and  he  has 
leetle  sense,  it  musn't  be  said  by  a  man  on  the  'arth,  or 
by  the  Lord  in  the  heaven,  when  we  come  to  His  presence, 
that  three  men  stood  on  this  beach  and  seed  one  of  his 


378  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

creeturs  in  peril,  even  if  he  sought  it  in  his  foolishness,  and 
made  no  effort  to  save  him.  Yis,  he  must  sartinly  be  saved 
if  it  be  within  mortal  power ;  but  a  boat  can't  live  in  that 
sea,  and  the  canoe  and  the  paddle  must  do  it.  Henry,  I've 
seed  ye  fetch  a  canoe  through  water  wild  enough  to  be  fear- 
ful to  most  men,  and  ye  have  follered  me  down  rapids  that 
even  a  Huron  would  falter  to  shoot ;  and  ye  must  take  the 
starn  and  I  will  take  the  bow,  and  the  Lad  shall  stay  on  the 
beach  here  while  you  and  me  make  the  venturV' 

"But  I  want  to  go,  too,  John  Norton.  What  can  I  do  if 
I  stay  here  on  the  beach?" 

"Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  seized  his  paddle,  and 
lifted  the  bow, of  the  canoe,  while  Henry  lifted  the  stern, 
"  there  be  times  when  one  mortal  must  act  while  another 
must  wait ;  and  I  know  that  the  waitin'  be  harder  than  the 
doin' ;  and  I  know  ye  have  the  harder  work,  but  ye  must 
do  it.  But  ye  needn't  stand  idle,  for  ye  can  gather  some 
sticks  and  start  a  fire  under  the  ledge  here,  and  make  the 
flame  go  high,  for  it  will  give  Henry  and  me  the  bearin's, 
and  mayhaps  it  will  help  us  greatly." 

"  I  will,  I  will,"  said  the  Lad.  "  I  will  make  the  blaze  go 
high,  John  Norton,  and  I  will  ask  God  to  help  you  save 
the  poor  man,  and  bring  you  and  Henry  safe  back  to  the 
shore." 

"That's  right,  Lad,  that's  right,"  said  the  Trapper.  I 
remember  yer  prayin'  on  Tomahawk  Pint,  and  I  raaly  think 
it  was  an  actaal  help,  and  it  may  be  the  Lord  will  hear  ye 
agin.  But  be  sure  and  don't  forgit  to  put  in  some  'arnest 
words  for  crazy  John,  for  me  and  Henry  can  take  care  of 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  379 

ourselves.  But  if  the  fool  keeps  standin'  up  in  Lis  boat  as 
he  was  when  the  flash  showed  him,  he'll  need  some  help  to 
steady  him,  or  he'll  lose  his  balance  for  sartin."  And,  even 
as  he  spoke,  the  Trapper  waded  out  into  the  lake  till  the 
propei  depth  had  been  reached,  and  then,  with  practised 
.agility,  ne  leapt  upward  and  lighted  on  his  knees  in  the  bow 
of  the  canoe,  giving,  at  the  instant  he  landed,  a  powerful 
sweep  with  his  paddle,  which,  assisted  as  it  was  by  the  push 
and  spring  of  Herbert,  as  he  jumped  to  his  place  in  the  stern, 
sent  the  light  vessel  far  out  amid  the  agitated  water.  And 
so  the  boat  disappeared  in  the  gloom. 

It  was,  indeed,  a  perilous  venture.  Even  the  old  Trapper 
had  not  realized  the  height  and  velocity  of  the  billows  until 
the  canoe  had  fairly  entered  into  them.  The  water  foamed 
and  hissed  around  the  vessel ;  it  heaved  it  up  as  with  the 
power  of  mighty  hands,  and  then  let  it  down  with  a  splash 
into  the  hollow  troughs,  with  a  suddenness  that  made  the 
frail  thing  quiver  through  all  its  slender  frame.  It  flung  its 
spray  into  the  eyes  of  those  struggling  at  either  end  until 
they  were  almost  blinded.  It  strove  to  wrench  it  from  its 
course,  and  turn  it  round  and  roll  it  over,  but  the  skill  and 
strength  of  those  who  knelt  at  either  end  still  held  it  to  its 
course,  and  forced  it  up  against  the  pressure  of  the  gale 
and  the  sweeping  force  of  the  waves,  at  an  astonishing 
speed.  Half  the  distance  had  been  traversed  before  a  flash 
of  lightniug  came,  and  when  it  came  again  the  boat  and  the 
man  standing  in  it  flashed  into  sight. 

"  The  Lad  must  be  prayin'  in'arnest,"  the  Trapper  shouted 
back  to  Herbert,  "  and  the  Lord  must  be  sartinly  helpin' 


380  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

Crazy  John,  or  he  never  could  keep  his  footin'  in  a  rollin; 
boat,  jumping  and  pitchin'  as  his  is  doin'.  Heave  her  staarn 
up,  boy !  quick !  heave  her  up.  There's  a  big  un  coinin', 
and  she'd  never  lift  to  it  if  we  struck  it  head  on.  Heave 
her  up  and  take  her  a  little  sidliu',  or  the  Lad  will  saitiuly 
bave  three  to  pray  for  instead  of  one." 

Herbert  could  just  make  out  the  words  of  the  Trapper 
as  they  were  borne  to  him  on  the  rush  of  the  wind,  and  he 
obeyed  to  the  letter.  He  put  every  ounce  of  strength  in 
his  frame  into  his  stroke,  and  the  little  vessel  responded  to 
its  pressure.  It  met  the  wave  a  little  quartering,  and  bal- 
anced at  precisely  the  proper  angle  as  it  was  by  the  Trap- 
per, it  clomb  up  the  side  of  the  huge  billow  laboriously 
but  safely,  and  shot  down  into  the  farther  recess  with  a  ve- 
locity as  if  it  were  conscious  of  the  danger  from  which  it  was 
flying. 

"  Ye  did  that  well,  boy,  ye  did  that  well.  It  was  as  big  a 
wave  as  I  ever  seed  a  canoe  lifted  over,  and  ye  did  it  hand- 
some. We  must  be  eenamost  to  the  boat  and  another 
flash  will  show  us  if  Crazy  John  be  in  the  boat  or — " 

He  was  interrupted  by  a  vivid  and  prolonged  blaze.  The 
whole  heaven  kindled,  and  the  lake  stood  forth  to  view  as 
clear  as  at  noonday.  The  boat  in  which  Crazy  John  had 
been  so  recklessly  standing,  was  not  thirty  feet  away,  and 
was  being  blown  forward  by  the  winds  at  the  speed  of  an 
arrow.  But  no  man  was  in  it ;  and  the  quick  eye  of  the 
Trapper,  with  lightning  glance,  was  searching  the  hollow  of 
the  waves  and  running  along  their  crests,  seeking  the  head 
of  a  man.    He  saw  it !    For  out  of  the  lake,  as  if  rising 


THE  MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  381 

from  a  depth,  sbot  the  head  and  shoulders  of  crazy  John. 
His  face  was  still  upturned  and  his  hands  still  lifted  high. 

11  Sheer  to  the  left ! "  yelled  the  Trapper.  "  Sharp  to  the 
left,  and  sweep  her  round ! " 

It  was  done.  The  canoe  swooped  to  the  left,  glancing 
upward  on  the  swell  of  the  wave  and  shot  into  the  oppo- 
site trough  with  a  leap.  As  it  fell,  the  blaze  of  the  light- 
ning died  out,  but  tbe  eye  of  the  Trapper  had  measured 
the  distance,  and  as  tbe  canoe  dropped  into  the  hollow  of 
the  sea  he  bowed  himself  till  his  broad  breast  rested  on  the 
prow,  and  stooping  far  over,  drove  his  hand  into  the  water. 

The  deed  was  done !    Tbe  man  was  saved ! 

The  fingers  of  the  Trapper  closed  on  the  long  hair  of 
Crazy  John,  and  in  an  instant  his  other  hand  had  fastened 
its  grasp  on  the  collar  of  his  coat. 

"  Tip  her  over  to  the  left,  boy ! "  called  the  Trapper,  "  tip 
her  over  to  the  left.  He  isn't  as  big  as  a  buck,  but  it'll  take 
a  good  deal  of  purchase  to  hist  him  over.  Down  with  her, 
boy  !  for  here  goes ! " 

The  feat  was  accomplished  handsomely.  The  Old  Trap- 
per, with  the  exercise  of  gigantic  strength  and  the  dexter- 
ity of  a  practiced  canoeman,  lifted  the  poor  man  out  of  the 
water  and  landed  him  full  length  at  his  feet ;  and  in  such  a 
way,  too,  as  to  scarcely  disturb  the  proper  balance  of  the 
light  shell,  which  was  now  heavily  loaded,  considering  the 
violence  of  the  water  it  had  to  traverse  on  its  way  to  the 
shore. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CEAZY  JOHN. 

"  Now  see  that  noble  and  most  sovereign  reason, 
Like  sweet  bells  jangled,  out  of  tune  and  harsh." 

—  Shakespeare. 

"TTTHETHEE  the  shock  with  which  he  struck  the  bottom  of 
the  canoe  had  stunned  him,  or  whether  he  had  fainted 
from  exhaustion  incident  to  his  struggles  in  the  water,  our 
friends  could  not  tell ;  but  they  rejoiced  in  the  fact  that  the 
man  whom  they  had  saved  continued  to  lie  stretched  in  th* 
bottom  of  the  canoe  perfectly  motionless.  For,  had  he  in- 
dulged in  any  "  antics,"  as  the  Old  Trapper  expressed  it,  it 
would  have  made  their  position  one  of  extreme  peril,  and 
as  it  was,  it  required  all  their  strength  and  skill  to  bring 
their  boat  to  shore. 

In  the  direction  they  were  now  going  the  wind  was  dead 
astern,  and  it  was  necessary  to  keep  the  canoe  in  rapid 
motion,  racing  along  on  the  top  of  a  wave  even  with  its 
own  velocity  lest  it  should  drop  into  the  trough,  and,  heavily 
loaded  as  it  was,  be  overwhelmed  by  the  succeeding  billows 
before  it  could  lift.  The  two  men,  therefore,  worked  for 
their  lives.  The  forethought  of  the  Old  Trapper  in  his 
directions  -to  the  Lad  was  now  fully  vindicated.  The  flame 
at  the   foot    of  the  ledge  was  burning  strong   and  clear 


THE  MAN   THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  383 

and  through  the  spray  and  the  driving  mists  blown  there- 
from the  Trapper  could  see  the  Lad  now  feeding  the  fire, 
and  anon  kneeling  on  the  sands.  The  poor  boy,  acting  in 
harmony  with,  and  under  the  impulse  of,  his  simple  but 
sublime  faith  and  yet  obedient  to  the  directions  of  the 
Trapper,  was  thus  giving,  unconsciously,  a  practical  illus- 
tration of  the  true  Christian  conception  of  the  relation 
which  works  and  faith  mutually  hold  to  each  other.  And 
well  would  it  be  for  many  of  us,  who  deem  ourselves 
learned  and  wise,  if  we  could  thus  unite  in  our  conduct  the 
two  great  co-ordinate  doctrines  of  the  Christian  "scheme. 

"  The  Lad  has  the  right  idee  of  it,"  said  the  Trapper,  so- 
liloquizing, "  yis,  the  Lad  may  not  be  overknowin',  but  he 
has  the  right  idee  of  it.  The  fire  alone  don't  seem  quite 
enough,  and  the  prayin'  alone  wouldn't  help  me  and  Henry 
a  bit,  but  ye  jine  the  two  and  make  the  wood  support  the 
prayin'  and  the  prayin'  sort  o'  help  out  the  wood,  and  it 
sartinly  comes  nigh  the  Lord's  idee  of  it,  as  I  conceit." 

In  a  moment  the  canoe  had  drawn  nigh  the  shore,  and 
the  Lad,  running  out  into  the  water,  assisted  eagerly  to  lift 
it  to  the  beach. 

"  We've  saved  him,  Lad  !  "  said  the  old  man. 

"  I  knew  you  would  save  him,  John  Norton,  for  I  asked 
God  to  save  him ;  and  he  has  said,  '  Ask-and-ye-shall-re- 
ceive,'  and  I  asked  him  to  give  us  Crazy  John  in  safety,  and 
I  never  asked  God  to  do  anything  yet,  that  he  didn't  do." 

"  I  guess  ye  be  more  reasonable  in  yer  askin',  then,  than 
some  of  the  missioners  be  in  their  prayin',  Lad ;  for  the  last 
time  I  heerd  one  in  the  settlements  he  spent  more'n  twenty 


384  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

minutes  in  prayin',  and  he  asked  more  than  a  hundred  things 
of  the  Lord,  and  half  of  'em  at  least,  to  my  sartin  knowl- 
edge, wasn't  any  way  reasonable,  for  he  didn't  confine  him- 
self to  the  pints  of  the  case.  And  there's  nothin'  like  stick- 
in'  to  the  main  pints  of  the  case  when  ye  are  talkin'  to  the 
Lord,  as  I  conceit." 

\i7hile  he  had  been  saying  this  he  had  lifted  Crazy  John 
in  his  arms  and  borne  him  to  the  fire,  and  at  once  pro- 
ceeded with  his  efforts  to  restore  him  to  consciousness.  In 
this  he  was  soon  successful,  and  in  a  short  time  the  unfor- 
tunate being  who  had  been  so  nigh  death,  was  sitting  with 
his  back  propped  against  the  ledge  gazing,  with  eyes  in 
whose  look  consciousness  was  revealed,  it  is  true,  but  whose 
consciousness  was  that  of  one  whose  reason  had  been  over- 
turned, and  whose  faculties  were  exposed  to  the  deceptions 
which  insanity  practices  on  its  wretched  victims. 

A  strange  and  remarkable  looking  being  he  was,  as  he 
sat  with  his  back  against  the  ledge  in  the  bright  glow  of 
the  firelight.  His  countenance  was  cast  in  a  noble  mould, 
and  his  features  were  almost  faultless,  in  the  clean  outline 
of  their  nearly  classic  beauty.  Age  of  course  had  cut  its 
history  in  wrinkles  and  withered  the  fulluess  of  his  appear- 
ance, but  his  forehead  was  broad  aud  high,  the  front  ample 
in  its  curvature,  providing  residence  for  a  brain  of  unusual 
size,  his  nose  was  straight  and  thin,  with  round,  curved 
nostrils.  His  mouth  generous  but  not  excessive,  while  a 
beard  of  snowy  whiteness  covered  all  the  lower  part  of  his 
face  and  lay  in  waving  folds  upon  his  breast.  His  hair  was 
long ;  the  growth  of  years ;  —  none  knew  how  many,  —  and 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  385 

whiter  if  possible  than  his  beard.  His  eyebrows  were  as 
white  as  snow,  abundant,  and  straight  in  their  lines.  The 
brow  itself  beetled  outward.  The  sockets  of  the  eye  were 
large,  and  the  orbs  themselves  which  glowed  within 
the  recess,  were  deep,  black  and  lustrous.  The  first  im- 
pression that  these  strange  eyes  made  upon  one  was  of  their 
mildness ;  a  mildness  born  of  suffering,  perhaps,  as  if  the-sad- 
ness  of  years  and  loss  had  softened,  if  it  had  not  utterly 
extinguished  the  gleam  of  their  original  fire.  But  a  close 
observer  could  not  fail  to  note  that  within  and  behind  their 
clear,  steady  gaze  was  a  wavering  light  that  came  and 
flitted,  and  came  again,  as  if  nature  would  thus  express 
the  unsteadiness  and  insecurity  of  the  disturbed  reason, 
which  formerly  held  fixed  possession  of  her  throne. 

"Well,  Crazy  John,"  said  the  Trapper,  "how  do  you 
feel  1 " 

"  I  am  not  crazy,"  he  returned,  "  you  are  crazy,  and 
everybody  else  is  crazy.  I  am  the  only  man  that  isn't  crazy 
in  the  world." 

"  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  ye  was  about  half  right  in  yer 
idees  on  that  pint,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  for  I  sartinly 
think  most  men  be  a  leetle  cracked  -,  and  it  may  be  I  have 
a  kink  or  two  in  me  somewhere,  and  if  everybody  was  just 
like  you,  I  conceit  there  wouldn't  be  a  crazy  man  in  the 
world.  But  what  was  ye  out  on  the  water  to-night  for  ? 
And  why  didn't  ye  stay  in  yer  shanty  or  find  a  safe  spot  as 
we  did  when  the  storm  came  down  ?  It  was  a  bit  of  sheer 
foolishness,  Crazy  John,  for  a  mortal  man  to  resk  his  life  as 
ye  did  on  the  lake  to-night." 


386  ADIKONDACK  TALES. 

"  She  called  me,"  returned  the  other,  while  his  eyes  dark- 
ened their  glow,  "  she  told  me  to  come,  and  I  went,  and  I 
found  her,  too.  Found  her  in  the  air  and  the  wave  and  the 
wind." 

"  Found  who  ? "  said  the  Lad,  "  whom  did  you  find  in  the 
air  and  the  wind  and  the  wave,  Crazy  John  ? " 

"  Wliom  did  I  find  ! "  exclaimed  the  other,  "  I  found  the 
woman  I  loved,  and  the  spirit  I  worship ;  the  spirit  of  white- 
ness and  sweetness  and  beautiful  grace  that  I  loved  long 
ago  —  long  ago  —  long  ago.  The  spirit  that's  mine,  and  will 
be  mine  when  the  waves  cease  to  roll  and  winds  cease  to 
blow,  and  the  air  is  unbreathed  by  the  nostrils  of  men." 

And  as  he  said  this  the  paleness  of  his  face  flushed  and 
his  eyes  glowed  like  coals,  as  if  they  were  indeed  but  the 
windows  of  his  soul,  and  his  soul  was  aglow  with  the  fervor 
of  a  deathless  hope  and  ardent  desire. 

"  Why  did  she  call  you  out  into  the  lake,"  said  the  Lad, 
"  when  the  waves  were  so  high  and  the  winds  so  strong  ? 
I  don't  think  she  ought  to  do  that." 

"  Young  man !  "  exclaimed  the  other,  "  what  cares  a  spirit 
for  wind  ,and  waves,  the  movements  of  air  and  of  water  ? 
Spirits  have  power  in  the  air,  and  the  sea  and  the  winds  do 
their  bidding.  I  have  seen  her  in  the  sun  when  he  rose 
over  the  mountain,  and  in  the  moon  when  she  deepened  the 
blue  of  the  sky  with  her  beams  j  and  the  winds  have  borne 
me  her  songs  from  away,  —  far  away, — far  away,  and  the 
waves  turn  to  white  at  the  touch  of  her  feet  when  she  walks 
on  their  crests.  My  spirit  is  queen  of  the  sea,  and  the  waves 
are  her  slaves.    Old  Trapper!"  he  shouted,  as  he  rose  to  his 


* 
THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  387 

feet,  took  a  step  forward,  and  stretched  out  his  hand  with 
a  gesture  as  grand  as  Paul  must  have  used  iu  his  ap- 
peal to  Agrippa,  while  his  face  flamed  with  excitement  and 
his  form  trembled,  "  Old  Trapper,  you  have  lived  till  your 
head  is  whitening  and  wisdom  abides  on  your  lips, — believ- 
est  thou  there  are  spirits  ? " 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly  I  do,"  returned  the  Old  Trapper,  "  even 
the  Hurons  believe  that,  and  it  would  be  a  shame  for  a 
white  man  to  believe  less  than  an  Injun,  'specially  a  mis- 
erable dog  of  a  Huron.  Yis,  I  sartinly  believe  there  be 
sperits." 

"  Have  you  ever  seen  them,  John  Norton  ?  "  exclaimed 
the  other. 

"  I  can't  say  for  sartin  I  ever  did,  Crazy  John.  I  can't 
say  for  sartin  I  ever  did  actally  see  a  sperit,  but  I'll  confess 
that  more'n  once,  when  standin'  by  the  grave  of  a  comrade, 
or  on  the  mound  of  the  trenches  where  we  buried  the  dead 
arter  a  scrimmage,  I  have  felt  that  the  sperits  of  the  dead 
was  around  me." 

"  They  were  there !  they  were  there  !  "  exclaimed  the 
other,  in  a  voice  lifted  almost  to  a  scream.  "  They  were 
there,  but  you  were  blinded.  You  have  eyes  and  see  not, 
ears  and  hear  not.  But  my  eyes  see,  and  my  ears  hear,  for 
I  am  not  of  the  earth.  I  died  when  she  died,  but  I  am  con- 
demned to  stay  on  the  earth  for  my  sins  !  —  for  my  sins  !  — 
for  my  sins  '  —  condemned  to  stay  till  my  sins  be  washed 
away,  and  I  am  made  white,  then  I  shall  go  —  then  I  shall 
go —  then — " 

A  clap-  of  thunder,  heavy  and  prolonged,  here  suddenly 


388  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

broke  in  on  his  speech.  The  beach  trembled  under  their 
feet  as  the  peal  rolled  in  awful  detonations  through  the  sky. 
The  look  of  wild  excitement  faded  out  of  the  countenance 
of  the  singular  being.  He  bowed  his  head  as  with  solemn 
reverence,  and  when  the  last  heavy  reverberation  died  away, 
he  lifted  his  face,  every  line  of  which  was  settled  in  awe, 
toward  the  cloud,  and  said :  — 

"Thunder  aivay,  Almighty  God!  I  love  to  hear  thy  voice 
shake  the  world.  Thy  power  is  above  all  powers,  and  the 
spirits  themselves  veil  their  faces  in  front  of  the  glory  of 
thy  throne  !  Almighty  God,  I  love  the  roll  of  thy  thunder, 
for  she  has  told  me  of  thy  love  and  thy  power." 

The  solemn  earnestness  with  which  he  pronounced  these 
words;  the  suggestiveness  of  his  gesture  as  he  stood  with  out- 
stretched hands ;  and  face  lifted  toward  the  clouds ;  the  roar 
of  waves,  rising  from  amid  the  gloom ;  the  grand  and  awful 
surroundings  made  by  the  night  and  the  storm,  —  combined 
to  produce  an  impression  on  the  three  men,  two  of  whom 
were  looking  at  him  with  wonder,  and  the  third  with  curi- 
ous interest,  that  would  have  been  difficult  for  they  them- 
selves to  explain. 

"  Come,  come,  Crazy  John,"  said  the  Trapper,  at  leng'h, 
"  Ye  are  sartinly  a  good  deal  stirred  up,  to-night,  and  ye'd 
better  sort  o'  settle  down.  Ye  won't  be  any  wiser  for  look- 
in'  at  that  cloud  so  'arnestly,  for  there's  nothin'  in  it  for  a 
mortal  to  see." 

il  See ! "  he  exclaimed,  as  he  wheeled  suddenly  around, 
till  he  stood  face  to  face  with  the  Trapper,  "  my  eyes  have 
the  vision  of  sight  that  sees  the  end  from  the  beginning, 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  389 

I  see  back  and  ahead,  below  and  above,  and  far  off.  I  am 
a  prophet  of  God.  I  am  the  angel  whose  head  is  as*  wool 
and  whose  eyes  are  a  flame ;  and  nothing  that  has  been,  and 
nothing  that  is,  and  nothing  that  shall  be,  is  hidden  from 
me.  For  I  look,  and  I  see,  and  I  know  what  the  years  will 
brmg —  will  bring  —  will  bring." 

"  It  may  be  as  ye  say,  Crazy  John,"  said  the  Trapper, 
u  but  I  sartinly  doubt  if  ye  know  what  ye  are  talkin'  about, 
for  ye  be  but  a  man,  and  I've  heerd  that  the  ways  of  the 
Lord  be  past  nndin"  out.  But  if  ye  can  see  ahead,  and 
know,  as  ye  say,  what  is  to  come,  ye  may  be  able  to  tell  us 
what  is  to  happen  to  us  'twixt  this  and  the  time  when  we 
come  to  the  edge  of  the  great  clearin'." 

"  John  Norton,"  said  the  other,  "  as  he  turned  his  blazing 
orbs  upon  him  with  a  steadiness  and  intensity  of  gaze  from 
which  a  man  of  less  nerve  and  coolness  would  have  shrunk, 
u  John  Norton,  you  have  lived  in  the  woods  and  you  will 
die  in  the  woods.  I  see  a  grave  under  the  pines,  and  but 
one  man  at  the  grave,  and  a  dog." 

"  I'm  glad  it's  under  the  pines,  Crazy  John.  Yis,  I'm  glad 
it's  under  the  pines,  if  the  grave  be  for  me.  Ye  may  be 
right  as  to  the  dog,  for  dogs  be  short  lived,  and  "  Rover  "  is 
aged,  and  it's  reasonable  to  think  that  I'll  outlive  him  ;•  but 
"  Sport "  be  a  little  more  than  a  pup  yit,  and  it's  nateral  to 
think  that  he'll  outlive  me,  for  the  days  of  a  mortal  be 
fixed,  and  I  conceit  that  I've  come  nigh  the  eend  of  my  days 
on  the  'arth.  But  ye  are  sartinly  wrong  if  ye  see  but  one 
man,"  for  Henry  and  the  Lad  be  both  young,  and  I  know  that 
both  the  boys  will  be  at  the  grave  when  they  make  it  for 
me  under  the  pines." 


390  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

"  The  youth  you  call  Henry  is  the  one  that  stands  here," 
responded  the  other,  as  he  turned  his  glowing  eyes  towards 
Herbert,  "  and  he  it  is  I  see  by  the  grave ;  but  the  Lad  is 
not  there,  for  he  has  a  grave  of  his  own  that  I  see,  and  his 
mound  will  be  flat  when  your  mound  is  fashioned,  John 
Norton." 

"  Where  is  my  grave,  Crazy  John  ?  "  said  the  Lad,  "  where 
is  my  grave  ?  " 

"  Your  grave  is  by  the  sea,  young  man.  By  the  deep, 
deep  sea ;  the  shining,  the  rolling,  the  far-reaching  sea.  It 
is  a  grave  among  many.  It's  a  grave  with  a  grave :  the 
grave  of  one  gone  on  before.  Young  man,  I  see  your  grave 
amid  many,  and  'tis  made  with  a  grave,  by  the  long-reach- 
ing, far-rolling,  deep-sounding  sea." 

"  Where  is  my  grave,  Crazy  John  ? "  asked  Herbert,  who, 
leaning  on  his  paddle,  had  been  curiously  watching  the  sin- 
gular being,  "  where  is  my  grave  ?  and  who  is  there  by  it  ? 
and  where  is  it  to  be  made  ? " 

"  Your  grave  is  not  a  grave,"  was  the  answer.  And  in- 
stead of  looking  at  Herbert  he  turned  himself  toward  the 
lake ;  and,  with  his  back  to  the  young  man,  and  lifted  head 
gazing  steadfastly  out  into  the  gloom,  he  continued  j  "  your 
grave  is  not  a  grave.  It  is  not  under  pines.  It  is  not  amid 
graves.  It  is  not  in  the  earth.  Men  will  not  find  it ;  women 
will  not  weep  o'er  it.  It  rises  and  sinks.  It  moves  and  it 
rolls.  It's  a  grave  without  stone,  without  name,  without 
spot  —  "and  the  strange  being  started  along  the  beach, 
walking  ankle-deep  in  the  froth  and  the  water,  muttering 
to  himself,  u  It  rises  and  sinks.  It  moves  and  it  rolls.  A 
grave  without  name,  without  stone,  without  spot." 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  391 

"  Will  he  come  back  ? "  asked  Herbert,  speaking  to  the 
Trapper. 

"  Sartinly,  sartinly,"  returned  the-  old  man,  "  the  fit  will 
leave  him  pritty  soon.  I've  knowed  Crazy  John  for  forty 
year  off  and  on,  and  usually  he's  quiet  enough ;  but  a  storm 
seems  to  rouse  him,  and  thunder  makes  him  wild ;  but  the 
storm  is  dyin'  out,  and  in  half  an  hour  he'll  be  as  calm  as 
the  lake.  It's  no  use  to  foller  him,  for  when  the  fit  is  on 
him  ye  can't  manage  him,  but  when  he's  cooled  down  a 
leetle  he'll  come  back  as  quiet  as  a  child  and  be  nateral- 
like." 


CHAPTER   V. 

A.  PROPHECY. 
"  The  voice  sounds  like  a  prophet's  word."  —  Halleck. 

Portia.  "  Why,  know'st  thou  any  harm's  intended  ? 
Soothsayer.  None  that  I  know  will  be,  much  that  I  fear  may  chance." 

Shakespeare. 

A  S  the  Trapper  had  predicted,  the  storm  was  passing 
away.  The  body  of  it  had  already  got  beyond  the 
eastern  mountains,  and  the  thunder  had  sunk  away  into 
murmurs.  The  lightning  blazed  dimly,  and  cast  only  tran- 
sient illuminations  through  the  farther  darkness.  Where 
the  clouds  had  been  was  now  but  a  thin  vapory  film,  and 
even  this  grew  thinner  and  thinner  until  the  great  stars 
broke  through  it  with  their  luminance,  and  glowed  with 
ample  splendor  in  a  sky  which  the  tempest  had  washed. 
The  waves  sank  with  the  winds.  They  died  together  like 
cause  and  effect,  and  in  a  brief  time  the  lake,  which,  but  so 
recently  had  been  tossing  with  violent  agitations,  stretched 
from  the  beach  at  their  feet  to  its  southern  extremity  with 
a  surface  so  level  that  scarcely  a  ripple  stirred  its  smooth 
expanse  with  its  motion.  In  it  the  sky  found  a  mirror,  and 
the  stars  overhead  multiplied  themselves  in  its  depths. 

"  It's  sartiuly  a  marvel,"  said  the  Trapper,  speaking  to 
his  two  companions,  "how  quick  Natur'  can  change  her 
look.    Her  moods  be  like  the  moods  of  a  man.    Come,  Lad," 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW   MUCH.  393 

he  continued,  as  he  threw  some  fresh  branches  into  the  fire, 
"  the  morn  will  soon  be  here,  and  the  sands  under  the  ledge 
be  dry ;  come,  onkiver  yer  fiddle  and  play  us  a  tune.  I 
conceit  that  Crazy  John  will  jine  us  when  he  hears  ye  play- 
in',  for  I've  heerd  him  play  himself,  and  the  music  will  calm 
him." 

So  saying,  the  old  man  seated  himself  under  the  projec- 
tion of  the  ledge  by  the  side  of  Herbert,  who  had  already 
stretched  himself  in  a  reclining  attitude. 

The  Lad  took  the  violin  from  its  case,  and  after  carefully 
examining  it  to  see  that  it  had  received  no  injury,  he  placed 
the  bow  upon  the  strings  and  began  to  move  it  lightly  and 
waveringly,  as  if  feeling  for  the  true  initial  note.  In  a  mo- 
ment his  mind  reached  the  decision.  Perhaps  some  tune- 
ful suggestion  or  melodious  memory  had  been  communica- 
ted to,  or  stirred  within  his  mind  by  the  stray  fugitive 
chords,  for  his  face  suddenly  lighted,  his  hand  steadied  it- 
self, and  the  bow,  with  the  proper  pressure  upon  it,  began  its 
progress  over  the  strings,  true  and  even  as  hand  of  man 
might  make  it.  The  note  rose  clear  and  high.  It  rose  into 
the  air,  rolled  out  above  the  lake,  and  stole  along  the  listen- 
ing shore.  It  was  followed  in  soft  and  measured  succession 
by  others  equally  sweet,  clear,  and  fine.  The  sounds  were 
as  pure  as  the  cleansed  air  into  which  they  rose.  The  stars, 
shining  with  steady,  self-contained  luminance,  were  no  more 
mild  and  soothing  to  the  eye  than  were  the  easy,  full- 
rounded  notes  that  the  instrument  yielded  forth,  to  the  ear. 

It  was  a  hymn  of  peace.  A  hymn  such  as  angels  might 
sing  to  a  soul  that  had  passed  through  stormy  passages, 


394  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

been  rudely  buffeted,  and  borne  much  during  its  earthly, 
life,  when  it  had  been  lifted  above  the  eartb,  and  with  its 
warfare  ended  was  being  ministered  unto  by  those  who  long 
had  known  the  infinite  peace.    No  words  can  describe  the 
exceeding  softness  of  the  strains.    Limited  as  the  poor  boy 
was  in  the  powers  that  make  the  average  man  potential 
and  efficient,  his   one  great  gift  stood  out  resplendent. 
Within  his  soul  the  gift  or  genius  of  music  found  its  home. 
His  tongue  might  falter  in  its  attempt  to  master  the  form 
of  verbal  speech,  but  music  had  bestowed  upon  him  a  di- 
vine expression.    No  one  that  heard  him  play  could  ever 
doubt  it.    In  quality  it  was  a  revelation  of  what  inarticulate 
expression  might  be.    To-night  his  mood  was  of  the  finest. 
Sitting  under  the  projection  of  the  ledge,  with  the  lake,  in 
which  the  stars  were  mirrored,  before  him,  the  blue  vault 
bright  with  its  golden  splendor  overhead,  the  somber  woods 
around,  and  the  great,  solemn,  and  as  it  were  expectant 
silence  soliciting  the  presence  of  his  pure  soul,  through  the 
one  medium  that  God  had  given  him  to  pour  forth  the  inno- 
cence, the  longing  and  the  faith  of  his  beautiful  spirit,  he 
played  with  a  delicacy  of  touch  and  an  evenness  of  pressure 
that  were  marvelous.    The  Trapper  lay  leaning  against  the 
rock  with  his  eyes  closed.    Herbert  sat  watching  the  Lad's 
lighted  countenance  with  eyes  that  searched  in  vain  for 
some  explanation  of  the  boy's  wonderful  gift.     He  had 
heard  the  masters  of  the  world  play,  and  his  own  ear  did 
not   lack  culture}  but  inwardly   he  was   constrained    to 
confess,  that  never  had  he  heard  an  instrument  yield  forth 
such  melody  as  his  simple  minded,  awkwardly-formed  com- 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  395 

panioD,  with  long  and  easy-goiDg  motions  of  the  bow,  was 
sending  forth  into  the  receptive  air. 

He  might  have  been  playing  five  minutes  when  Herbert's 
quick  ear  caught  the  sound  of  a  slow,  soft  step  stealing 
along  the  sand  j  and  in  a  moment,  out  of  the  star-lighted 
dusk,  the  form  of  Crazy  John  appeared.  He  stole  into  the 
circle  of  the  light  so  quietly  that  the  Lad  did  not  know  of 
his  approach,  but  Herbert  watched  him  closely  and  noted 
the  change  that  had  come  over  him.  The  wildness  had  left 
his  countenance,  the  gleam  had  faded  from  his  eye,  his 
muscles  had  relaxed  their  tension,  and  his  whole  face  had 
settled  to  repose.  He  sank  softly  down  into  the  sand,  and 
gazed  upon  the  Lad  with  a  look  such  as  a  mortal  at  his  en- 
trance into  heaven,  might  contemplate  the  first  angelic  being 
he  chanced  to  meet.  And  as  the  Lad  played  on,  as  the 
sweet  consoling  notes  flowed  forth,  they  carried  peace  and 
consolation  to  the  bosom  of  the  unfortunate  creature.  His 
eyes  overflowed ;  the  great  tears  stole  down  his  cheeks  and 
fell  into  the  white  volume  of  his  beard,  but  his  gaze  re- 
mained steadfastly  fixed  upon  the  boy's  face  and  the  look 
of  worshiping  awe  remained  as  steadfastly  on  his  own.  At 
last  the  Lad  paused ;  he  laid  the  violin  upon  his  lap  with 
his  bow  across  it. 

"  Well,  John,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  opened  his  eyes, 
"what  do  you  think  of  that! " 

"  Boy ! "  he  exclaimed,  without  answering  the  question  of 
the  Trapper  and  addressing  himself  to  the  Lad,  "  boy,  thou 
art  a  spirit !  Thy  soul  is  not  of  this  earth.  The  gift  of  God 
is  in  vou.     Thou  art  one  of  the  chosen  ones  sent  out  to 


396  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

minister  unto  the  saints.  The  Lord  hath  lent  thee  to  tho 
earth ;  but  only  for  a  year,  a  day,  and  an  hour.  Thou  shalt 
not  stay  among  men  ;  thou  shalt  go  hence,  but  not  till  thou 
hast  done  a  great  deed ;  and  those  that  laughed  at  thee 
shall  know  that  with  thy  weakness  God  hath  mingled 
strength,  and  made  thy  lacking  to  be  greater  than  their  full- 
ness. They  call  me  '  Crazy  John/  and  they  call  me  so  be- 
cause my  ways  are  not  their  ways,  and  my  thoughts  are 
not  their  thoughts.  I  am  not  crazy  save  when  the  body 
vexes  me  and  the  forces  of  the  earth  that  are  demoniacal 
possess  me.  But  I  do  not  stay  in  my  body  always ;  I .  leave 
it  and  come  back  to  it.  I  have  left  it  for  hours ;  yes,  for  a 
day  and  a  night,  and  a  night  aud  a  day  ;  left  and  come  back 
to  it.  And  I  see  things  when  my  eyes  are  stony ;  I  feel 
when  my  body  is  stiff ;  I  go  where  there  is  no  time,  and 
all  things  that  have  been,  and  all  things  that  are,  and  all 
things  that  shall  be,  siand  out .  And  I  have  seen  thee,  boy, 
before  we  met,  and  one  with  thee  that  is  not  with  thee 
now." 

"Who  was  it,  Crazy  John?"  said  the  Lad,  "who  was  it 
that  was  with  me  ? "  and  the  poor  boy  actually  panted  with 
excitement,  as  through  his  comprehension  dimly  stole  a 
startliug  thought. 

"  It  was  one  thou  hast  seen  and  shalt  see ;  but  not  yet. 
I  shall  see  her  first.  You  shall  come  after,  and  I  see  the 
way  of  your  coming  and  the  hour !  " 

"  Come,  come,  Crazy  John,  the  storm  has  gone  by,  and 
why  don't  ye  settle  back  to  yer  nateral  sense  ?  Te'll  skeer 
the  Lad  out  of  his  wits  with  yer  nonsensical  talkin'." 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  397 

"  John  Norton  ! "  exclaimed  the  other,  "  thou  wast  born 
for  the  body  and  the  earth.  Thou  dwellest  in  the  body  and 
art  earthy.  Thou  canst  not  understand  the  couverse  of 
spirits." 

"  Pin  glad  to  see  ye  come  down  to  facts,  Crazy  John ;  yis, 
I'm  glad  to  see  ye  come  down  to  facts.  Of  course  I  dwell 
in  my  body,  and  a  mighty  pleasant  place  it's  been  to  dwell 
in  for  these  three-score  year.  And  I  can't  say  that  I  ever 
expect  to  git  into  a  better  one ;  for  the  Lord  made  it  for  me, 
and  I  must  say  he  put  it  together  jediciously,  as  the  time 
it  has  stood  and  the  sarvices  it  has  done,  proves.  And  as 
for  sperits,  I  don't  know  nothin'  about  'em ;  that  is,  I'm  not 
sartin  enough  about  anything  to  sight  on  it.  And  Henry 
will  tell  ye  I'm  always  ready  to  draw  at  a  ventur'  when 
meat  is  scarce  or  there  is  the  least  chance  of  fur.  Aud  if  ye 
are  raaly  sot  on  talkin'  any  more  about  sperits,  Crazy  John, 
you  and  me  will  jest  go  one  side  out  of  hearin'  of  the  boys, 
and  if  I  can  find  a  comfortable  spot  where  the  sand  isn't 
too  wet  and  the  seat  has  a  back-piece  to  it,  you  and  me  will 
have  a  great  time  talkin'  about  sperits.  That  is,  I'll  listen 
and  you  shall  talk,  and  that  is  the  best  way,  as  I  conceit, 
for  a  sensible  man  to  talk  with  another  about  sperits.  For 
if  he  don't  say  anything  wise,  he  sartinly  won't  say  any- 
thing foolish,  and  that's  a  raal  vartue  in  a  counsel.  But 
don't  skeer  the  Lad  any  more  with  talk  of  his  goin'." 

"  Scared !  why  should  the  Lad  be  scared  at  thought  of 
his  going  ?  I  will  not  talk  more,  John  Norton,  for  you  are 
ignorant  and  unbelieving ;  but  you  are  wise  in  your  order, 
only  you  belong  to  another  order  and  are  fixed  in  another 


398  •  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

sphere.  But  the  Lad  shall  go  —  he  shall  go !  —  he  shall  go  1 
on  a  stormy  night  and  amid  lire  j  and  you  and  Henry  shak 
see  him,  and  many  shall  see ;  —  see  the  fire !  see  the  flame ! 
and  you  shall  feel  the  touch  of  the  fire,  John  Norton,  and 
Henry  shall  be  scorched  with  the  flame.  For  you  shall  be 
with  the  Lad  'mid  the  fire,  and  you  would  go  with  him,  but 
your  time  is  not  yet,  for  you  must  sleep  'neath  the  pines  — 
'neath  the  pines  —  'neath  the  pines,  Old  Trapper ;  and  Hen- 
ry's grave  must  be  a  grave  without  stone,  without  name, 
without  spot.  But  why  should  I  tell  you  these  things? 
Shall  not  the  Lord  reveal  them  in  his  time  ?  Let's  to  sleep  ! 
let's  to  sleep !    You  sleep  while  I  leave  my  body." 

"That's  sartinly  good  counsel,"  said  the  Trapper,  "for 
the  morn  is  comin'  and  we  sartinly  have  been  stirred  up  a 
good  deal  to-night;  and  nothin'  settles  a  man  arter  he's 
been  riled,  like  sleep.  Ye'd  better  not  git  yer  feet  quite  so 
near  them  brands,  Crazy  John,  if  yer  spirit  is  raaly  goin'  out 
of  yer  body  for  a  little  tantrum  in  the  air  5  if  ye  do  ye  aint 
likely  to  find  more'n  half  of  yerself  when  ye  come  back, 
and  the  most  valuable  half  at  that,  for  I  count  that  the  legs 
and  feet  be  the  best  half  of  a  man  if  he  five  in  the  woods. 
So  crook  up  yer  knees  a  leetle,  Crazy  John,  or  ye'll  git  singed 
for  sartin." 

With  this  parting  admonition  the  Old  Trapper  stretched 
his  huge  frame  upon  the  sand  along-side  of  his  companion 
and  in  a  few  moments  the  long,  heavy  breathing  of  the  four 
gave  evidence  that  sleep  had  locked  their  senses  in  profound 
repose. 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  399 

The  summer  was  past  and  autumn  had  come.  The  ad- 
ventures with  which  our  three  friends  had  met  we  do  not 
purpose  to  narrate  in  this  volume.  It  chanced  that  the 
man  whose  story  we  are  telling  was  not  the  most  prominent 
actor  in  the  sad  and  startling  experiences  the  summer 
brought  to  them.  At  another  time  we  may  give  to  our 
readers  the  history  of  an  even  more  singular  and  unfortunate 
being  than  "The  Man  Who  Didn't  Know  Much"  —  but  of 
the  latter  we  must  write  now,  and  the  story  that-  has  de- 
tained us  so  long  draws  to  its  close. 

Herbert,  on  the  eve  of  his  departure  from  the  woods,  had 
succeeded  in  persuading  the  Old  Trapper  to  accompany  him 
to  his  city  home.  With  high  anticipations  they  had  struck 
eastward  from  the  Kacquette  until  they  came  to  the  upper 
branches  of  the  Hudson,  down  which  they  proceeded  until 
they  came  to  Albany.  There  they  left  their  light  boat  and 
continued  their  journey  in  one  of  the  river  steamers.  Ar- 
riving at  New  York  they  crossed  the  city  without  delay,  and 
took  passage  eastward  on  one  of  the  steamboats  that  trav- 
ersed the  Sound.  At  this  critical  point  of  tl  eir  journey  our 
pen  resumes  its  narration. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

THE   CATASTROPHE. 

"With  clashing  wheel,  and  lifting  keel, 
And  smoking  torch  on  high, 
When  winds  are  loud,  and  billows  reel, 
She  thunders,  foaming,  by. 

—  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes. 

TT  was  a  stormy  night.  The  wind  was  blowing  a  gale  ; 
and  not  a  star  was  visible.  The  wind  came  from  the 
south-east;  raw  and  damp  with  briny  dampness.  The  force 
of  a  thousand  leagues  of  unimpeded  violence  was  in  it.  It 
was  full  of  lusty  strength,  of  unchecked  might,  rageful  and 
fierce.  The  center  of  the  storm  movement  was  in  the  far 
Atlantic ;  but,  as  it  swept  round  on  its  invisible  axis  in  fear- 
ful revolutions,  Long  Island  split  the  periphery  of  its  power 
like  a  wedge,  and  sheared  off  a  mighty  column,  which 
poured  itself  into  and  down  the  Sound,  sweeping  it  from 
end  to  end.  The  waves  ran  high ;  they  rose  out  of  the 
darkness,  vast  volumes  of  on-rolling  water,  and  white- 
crested  with  rage,  like  mad  things  showing  their  teeth,  they 
rushed  against  the  steamer's  prow,  as  if  they  would  keel 
her  over  and  drive  her  downward  to  destruction. 

Only  a  few  of  her  full  complement  of  passengers  were  on 
deck.  Some  were  in  the  main  saloon,  gathered  in  knots 
for  comfort.    Others  sat  moodily  apart,  communing  with 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  401 

their  fears  j  while  not  a  few  were  in  their  state-rooms,  or 
down  below  in  their  berths,  sick,  or  thoroughly  frightened. 
The  air  was  full  of  foreboding.  The  prevalent  feeling  was 
that  of  alarm.  The  plunge  of  the  vessel  as  she  dived  down- 
ward into  the  hollow  of  the  sea ;  the  tremendous  shocks 
that  shook  her  from  stem  to  stern ;  the  quivering  that  con- 
vulsed her  huge  frame,  and  tried  her  timbers  in  all  their 
joints  as  the  great  sea  struck  her ;  the  groaning  of  the 
machinery,  and  now  and  then  the  rush  of  waters  overhead 
as  some  sea  swept  over  her  bulwarks,  —  revealed  to  those 
that  were  within  the  saloon,  or  lay  stretched  in  their  berths, 
that  the  gale  was  at  its  height. 

A  few  of  the  passengers  were  on  deck ;  some  were  sailors, 
and  from  habit  kept  an  exposed  position ;  others,  while  not 
seamen,  were  sufficiently  familiar  with  voyaging,  and  of 
such  a  temperament,  that  a  position  on  deck  and  the  sight 
of  a  storm  were  more  congenial  to  them  than  the  protected 
parlors.  Among  these  latter  our  three  friends  could  be 
numbered.  It  was  not  in  accordance  with  the  tempera- 
ments or  habits  of  Herbert  and  the  Trapper  to  stay  be- 
tween decks  when  such  a  storm  was  raging,  and  the  Lad 
could  not  remain  separate  from  his  companions.  Indeed, 
his  behavior  and  remarks  revealed  the  fact  that  he  was 
familiar  with  the  different  portions  of  the  vessel,  and  with 
the  proper  management  of  such  a  craft  in  a  storm.  He 
evidently  had  knowledge  of  the  machinery,  knew  the  name 
and  use  of  all  the  equipments,  and  showed  no  inconsiderable 
acquaintance  with  the  force  and  action  of  wind  and  waves, 
and  even  with  the  reefs  and  islands  of  the  coast  along 
which  the  course  of  the  vessel  was  now  directed. 


402  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

Herbert,  surprised  at  this  knowledge,  had  questioned  him 
in  conversation,  concerning  the  origin  of  it,  and  elicited 
from  him  many  facts  of  his  early  life ;  among  others,  that 
he  was  born  on  the  shore  of  the  Sound,  and  had  often  sailed 
the  very  waters  through  which  the  steamer  was  plungiDg. 
He  knew  the  name  and  position  of  the  beacon  lights  they 
passed,  of  the  various  headlands ;  and,  with  his  finger  pointed 
out  the  location  and  the  name  of  this  or  that  island  which 
was  hidden  in  the  gloom;  estimating  in  a  manner  that 
showed  the  accuracy  of  his  memory  and  his  familiarity  with 
the  coast,  the  probable  distance  these  islands  were  from 
them,  as  the  boat  careered  along. 

"  I  tell  ye,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  the  three  stood  close  to 
the  starboard  rail,  holding  on  to  an  iron  rod  for  support, 
"  I  tell  ye,  Henry,"  he  shouted,  "  this  is  a  wild  un.  I  was 
on  a  government  transport  in  the  center  of  old  Ontario 
once,  when  it  looked  mighty  squally  for  all  of  us ;  but  it 
sartinly  didn't  blow  harder  than  it  does  to-night.  I  remem- 
ber how  the  skipper  looked  and  acted,  and  what  he  did,  as 
if  it  was  but  yisterday." 

"  What  did  he  do  V  asked  the  Lad. 

"  He  put  his  ship  about,  Lad,"  responded  the  Trapper, 
11  afore  the  waves  got  half  as  high  as  this,  or  the  wind  half 
as  strong.  He  put  his  ship  about,  and  I  remember  the 
drenchin'  we  all  got  while  she  was  swingin'  round  j  but 
when  he  got  her  starn  on  how  she  did  go  ! " 

"  Where  did  she  fetch  up  ? "  asked  Herbert. 

"  Fetch  up  ?  "  replied  the  old  man.  "  We  didn't  fetch  up. 
There  was  no  fetch  up  to  her  that  night.    She  went  like  a 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  403 

young  buck  in  his  fust  chase ;  and  when  the  sun  riz  and 
the  winds  settled  a  leetle  he  scooted  her  in  atween  two  big 
islands ;  and  the  skipper  said,  —  I  conceit  he  may  have 
stretched  it  a  leetle,  —  the  skipper  said  that  the  old  tub  had 
gone. two  hundred  mile  that  night.  And  I  was  jest  thinkin' 
that  if  I  was  skipper  of  this  craft  I'd  'bout  ship,  shut  off 
steam  as  you  call  it,  and  let  her  drive  to'ard  York." 

"  It's  not  a  very  easy  thing  to  'bout  ship  in  a  sea  like 
this,  John  Norton,"  said  Herbert.  "  Could  it  be  done,  Lad  ? " 

"  I  think  perhaps  it  might  be  done,"  said  the  Lad ;  "  for 
the  engines  work  well,  and  she  is  a  good  boat  to  mind  her 
helm ;  but  it  don't  blow  hard  enough  yet  for  the  captain  to 
risk  running  on  to  the  coast  this  side  of  New  London. 
That's  a  famous  harbor,  and  if  it  blows  any  harder  I  guess 
the  captain  will  run  in  there." 

"  Lord-o'-massy,  Lad !  "  exclaimed  the  Old  Trapper,  ex- 
citedly, "  ye  talk  downright  foolishness.  It  can't  blow  any 
harder.    The  air  would  bust  if  it  did." 

"Yes,  it  can  blow  harder,  John  Norton,"  returned  the 
Lad.  "  I  have  seen  it  blow  harder  than  this ;  and  I  don't 
think  it  blows  as  hard  as  it  will  by  and  by." 

"  If  it  blows  any  harder,"  screamed  the  Trapper,  "  we'll 
all  go  to  the  bottom,  for  any  man  knows  that  them  leetle 
boats  strung  up  there  couldn't  live  out  in  them  waves  a 
minute.  Lord  !  What  a  thump  that  was  !  It  shook  her 
up  as  a  maul  does  a  wedge.  I  don't  marvel  that  the  wim- 
men  folks  be  a  leetle  screechy.  I  hope  the  poor  creeturs 
will  git  safe  to  shore." 

"  I  have  had  a  feeling,"  said  the  Lad,  half  speaking  to 


404  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

himself,  "  ever  since  we  got  aboard  that  something  was  go- 
ing to  happen  to-night.  I  don't  know  why  it  should  be  so ; 
but  I  keep  seeing  the  face  of  Crazy  John  out  there  in  the 
darkness." 

"  Come,  come,  Lad,  don't  ye  git  skeery,"  said  the  Old 
Trapper,  "  Crazy  John's  face  isn't  anywhere  nigh  us ;  for 
Henry  and  you  know  jest  where  it  lies ;  and  you  know  that 
we  put  five  good  feet  of  sile  on  top  of  him,  to  say  nothin'  of 
the  boughs  and  grasses,  and  the  wild  rose-bushes  ye 
throwed  in." 

For  several  minutes  nothing  was  said,  then  Herbert  con- 
tinued :  — 

"I  don't  see  how  anything  can  happen,  although  it  is  a 
very  severe  gale ;  for  the  ship  is  a  strong  one  and  she  is  be- 
ing well  handled ;  and  the  Lad  says  that  there's  a  good  har- 
bor twenty  miles  ahead,  into  which  the  captain  can  run  if 
he  is  compelled  to.  I  don't  see  how  anything  can  happen, 
—  do  you,  John  Norton  ?  " 

"  Not  as  I  can  see,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  but  I  can't 
say  that  I'm  used  to  jest  this  kind  of  boatin',  and  I  conceit 
my  jedgment  isn't  wuth  much.  Now  if  I  was  on  the  Rac- 
quette  in  a  squall  with  a  good  birch  under  me,  and  a  good 
paddle,  and  wasn't  too  heavily  loaded,  I  could  tell  ye  jest 
about  what  the  prospect  was  j  but  this  kind  of  boatin' 
makes  a  man  of  my  natur'  and  habits  but  leetle  better  than 
a  squaw,  for  all  there  is  to  do  is  to  jest  hang  on.  No,  I  sar- 
tinly  don't  know  much  about  this  kind  of  boatin',  and  my 
jedgment  isn't  wuth  a  cent." 

"  I  don't  know  what  we  should  do  if  anything  should 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  405 

happen/'  said  Herbert.  "  The  clerk  told  me  there  were  six 
hundred  passengers  aboard,  and  at  the  tables  to-riight  I 
thought  I  never  had  seen  so  many  women  and  children  in 
one  boat  at  a  time.  I  don't  know  what  would  become  ot 
them,  or  any  of  us  for  that  matter,  in  a  sea  like  this  if  any- 
thing " — 

"Fire!" 

No  one  could  say  whence  the  cry  came,  nor,  at  the  mo- 
ment, whether  it  was  the  voice  of  man  or  woman  that  sent 
it  out ;  but  from  whatever  throat  it  came,  it  came  projected 
with  all  the  energy  of  terror.  It  filled  the  great  saloon, — 
sank  to  the  lower  deck, —  penetrated  the  state-rooms  and 
berths, —  rose  into  the  pilot-house, —  and  was  blown  by  the 
gusts  into  the  farther  darkness  in  quivering  fragments  as  if 
the  winds  in  their  fierce  gladness  had  seized  it,  torn  it  in 
pieces,  and  flung  it  aside  to  be  ready  for  its  successor.  Nor 
had  they  long  to  wait :  it  came  upon  the  instant,  rising  wild 
and  high  —  piercingly  shrill  as  mortal  fear  could  make  it : 

"  Fire !    Fire  !    F-i-e-e  !  " 

The  effect  of  such  a  cry  on  shipboard  at  night,  in  the 
midst  of  such  a  gale,  on  a  crowded  steamer,  can  never  be 
known  to  those  who  have  not  heard  it ;  nor  communicated 
to  those  who  quietly  sit  in  safety  and  at  ease  reading  its  de- 
scription on  the  printed  page.  In  the  great  saloon,  when 
the  awful  sound  swept  through  it,  men  engaged  in  conver- 
sation stopped  —  looked  with  startled  interrogation  into 
each  other's  eyes,  with  faces  that  on  the  instant  turned 
white  as  ashes.  Women,  with  a  sudden  gesture,  placed 
their  hands  above  their  hearts  as  if  they  had  received  an 


406  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

unseen  stab.  Some  continued  sitting  as  they  had  been  as  if 
stiffened  to  the  position.  Others,  with  their  hands  still  on 
their  hearts,  sank  back  in  a  dead  swoon.  Children  stopped 
their  play  and  stood  staring  at  their  elders.  The  sick  in 
their  berths  stilled  their  groans  and  lay  straight  on  their 
cots  as  if  dead,  listening  with  pent  breath. 

On  deck  the  effect  was  the  same.  The  sound  had  the 
power  in  it  to  drown  all  other  sounds.  Those  that  heard  it 
rise,  heard  nothing  else.  It  captured  their  senses  and  held 
them  concentrated  to  itself.  The  roar  and  splash  of  the 
mighty  waves  — the  whistling,  screaming  wind — made  for  an 
instant  no  impression  on  the  senses.  The  one  terrible  sound 
dominated  all  other  noises ;  and  those  who  heard  the  dread- 
ful scream  were,  for  the  moment,  conscious  of  nothing  else. 

This  was  the  first  effect ;  but  when  the  cry  was  repeated, 
when  the  awful  scream  rose  the  second  time,  was  reiterated 
and  prolonged  as  mortal  fear  only  can  prolong  a*  cry,  fright 
took  possession  of  all.  Men  tumbled  from  their  berths, 
striking  the  floor  with  a  bound,  shouting.  The  state-room 
doors  burst  open  and  women  ran  out  screaming.  Those 
who  were  below  rushed  wildly  into  the  main  saloon,  tramp- 
ling on  each  other  in  their  headlong  course.  The  uproar 
was  fearful.  Men  called  for  their  wives.  Women  sci  earned 
for  their  husbands.  Mothers  clutched  their  children  to  their 
breasts.  Calls  and  shouts,  the  rush  of  hurrying  feet,  and 
shrieks,  filled  the  air. 

On  deck  all  was  hurry  and  confusion  incident  to  such  an 
emergency.  Hose  were  being  fitted,  pumps  got  in  motion, 
the  crew  was  being  told  off  into  companies,  and  the  proper 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  407 

officers  put  over  them.  The  captain  was  a  brave  man,  and 
skillful ;  the  officers  supported  him  nobly,  and  most  of  the 
crew  obeyed  the  voice  of  discipline.  The  places  of  those 
who  faltered  were  more  than  made  good  by  volunteers, 
amid  whom  the  Trapper,  Herbert,  and  the  Lad  were  ef- 
ficiently promiuent.  Brave  men  and  braver  women  were 
ainor.g  the  passengers,  who  exerted  themselves  to  still  the 
tumult.  The  captain  himself  went  into  the  main  saloon  on 
bis  way  to  the  engineer's  room,  and  addressed  the  passen- 
gers in  brave  and  hopeful  words. 

He  said  they  were  in  danger,  —  that  he  did  not  deny;  but 
that  he  had  been  in  great  danger  before,  and  came  out  all 
right ;  that  the  ship  was  on  fire  he  admitted ;  but  he  stated 
that  the  pumps  were  working  well,  and  if  they  could  not 
subdue  the  flames,  he  hoped  to  keep  them  under  until  he 
could  make  harbor. 

He  told  them  much  depended  on  themselves.  He  said, 
"  If  you  people  will  only  remain  quiet ;  if  you  will  only 
keep  order ;  if  you  will  only  stay  where  you  are,  and  not 
risk  your  lives  and  overwhelm  the  crew  by  rushing  on 
deck;  T  sincerely  believe  that  with  the  help  of  God  we 
shall  bring  you  through ;  and  land  every  man  woman  and 
child  in  safety." 

These  words  had  great  effect.  The  uproar  subsided.  A 
remarkable  calmness  fell  on  the  great  throng.  Most  re- 
mained standing,  but  kept  their  places.  Some  seated 
themselves,  and  assumed  a  calmness  they  did  not  inwardly 
feel.  Many  knelt  in  prayer,  and  breathed  in  silence  their 
petition  to  the  great  Being  whose  hand  controls  wave  and 
flame  alike. 


408  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

The  captain  passed  on,  and  entered  the  engineer's  room ; 
counseled  a  moment  with  the  chief,  and  then,  with  three 
carpenters,  began  to  explore  the  forward  hold  of  the  vessel, 
to  find  the  location  and  the  extent  of  the  fire.  It  took  but 
a  brief  search  to  discover  that  the  whole  forward  part  of 
the  ship  beneath  was  a  mass  of  flames.  The  freight  was 
of  combustible  material,  and  thoroughly  ignited.  The  cap- 
tain looked  at  the  dreadful  spectacle  for  an  instant,  while 
the  lines  of  his  face  grew  absolutely  rigid,  and  said :  — 

"  My  God !    The  ship  is  a  furnace !" 

He  stood  another  instant  in  profound  thought,  during 
which  his  quick  and  fearless  mind  had  considered  all  the 
contingencies,  and  without  a  word  to  the  three  men  that 
were  with  him,  he  started  for  the  deck  and  the  pilot-house. 
He  summoned  the  chief  engineer  and  his  officers  around 
him,  and  stated  what  he  had  discovered,  —  laid  the  whole 
subject  in  a  few  terse  words  before  them,  and  said  :  — 

"  Gentlemen,  in  five  minutes  the  saloons  will  be  like  an 
oven,  and  the  windows  of  this  pilot-house  will  be  cracking. 
Have  you  anything  to  suggest  ? " 

The  first  officer,  a  sailor  from  boyhood,  whose  head  and 
beard  were  already  gray,  said  promptly :  — 

"  Captain,  we  must  beach  her."  The  others  looked  their 
assent. 

"  It's  our  only  course,"  said  the  captain.  "  Pilot,"  said 
he,  turning  to  the  man  whose  eye  was  on  the  look-out, 
"  can  you  beach  her  ? "  The  other  deliberated  a  moment, 
and  said :  — 

"  Captain,  I  am  ready  to  take  any  responsibility  that  a 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  409 

man  in  my  position  should  take.  I  am  ready  to  execute 
any  order  you  give ,  but  I  will  not  take  the  responsibility 
of  running  this  steamer,  with  six  hundred  passengers 
aboard,  on  to  a  coast  that  I  know  nothing  of  beyond  the 
knowledge  1  have  of  the  lights,  the  reefs,  and  the  harbors. 
It  would  be  mere  chance  if  I  got  her  within  half  a  mile  of 
the  shore." 

The  captain  actually  groaned.  He  saw  and  admitted  the 
force  of  the  pilot's  assertion.  For  a  moment  not  a  word 
was  spoken,  while  the  ship  went  tearing  on  through  the 
water,  and  the  premonitions  of  risiDg  tumult  came  to  tjieir 
ears  from  below,  showing  that  the  passengers  were  already 
on  the  move.  He  looked  an  instant  into  each  face  before 
him,  lifted  his  hand  and  wiped  the  great  drops  of  sweat 
from  his  forehead,  and  said  :  — 

"  Gentlemen,  what  shall  we  do  ?  I  feel  the  floor  under 
my  feet  heating !  The  passengers  are  moving  out  of  the 
saloon  !  What  we  do  must  be  done  quickly !  We  are  over- 
loaded !  Our  boats  wouldn't  accommodate  half,  and  besides 
a  boat  couldn't  live  in  that  sea.     Wliat  shall  we  do  f  " 

Not  a  man  spoke.  They  felt  as  if  the  horror  of  death 
were  shutting  down  around  them.  They  were  brave,  they 
were  calm.  They  showed  no  evidence  of  fear.  They  could 
meet  death  as  men  should  meet  it ;  but  they  could  not  tell 
how  to  escape  it.  Suddenly  the  captain's  face  lighted,  with 
a  light  which  was  the  reflection  of  a  hope,  of  a  conjecture, 
of  a  possibility.  He  darted  out  of  the  pilot-house,  swung 
himself  down  among  the  crew,  who  were  busy  with  the 
pumps  and  the  hose,  and  shouted,  with  a  concentration  of 


410  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

voice  that  penetrated  the  roar  of  the  storm  like  a  knife  :  — 
"  Is  there  a  man  here  who  knows  this  coast  ?  " 
When  the  captain  dropped  among  them  the  men  stopped 
their  work  and  stood  stariDg  at  him.  Only  the  Old  Trapper 
and  Herbert,  each  of  whom  stood  above  the  forward  hatch, 
hose  in  hand,  directing  the  streams  that  the  pumps  sent 
through  the  swelling  tubes  downward,  kept  their  position. 
The  captain  waited  a  moment,  while  the  light  faded  from 
his  countenance  as  no  response  came,  and  then,  as  if  in  very 
despair,  he  shouted :  — 

"  Is  there  a  man  here  who  knows  this  coast  ?  " 
Again  no  reply  came,  and  he  was  upon  the  point  of  turn- 
ing away,  when  the  Lad,  who  had  been  kneeling  under  the 
protection  of  the  bulwark,  trying  to  stop  a  rent  which  the 
pressure  had  made  in  the  hose  that  the  Old  Trapper  was 
tending,  rose  out  of  the  shadow  and  approaching  the  cap- 
tain, said :  — 
"  Yes  sir.    I  know  the  coast." 

"  Who  are  you,"  said  the  captain,  "  that  claim  such 
knowledge  ?  Are  you  not  the  youth  I  saw  with  the  old 
hunter  at  the  table  to-night?  How  should  you,  born  in  the 
interior,  know  anything  about  this  coast  ? " 

"  I  was  not  born  in  the  woods,"  responded  the  Lad,  "  I 
was  born  within  ten  miles  of  where  we  are,  and  I  know 
every  rock  and  reef  and  point,  for  I  have  fished  on  them 
all ;  and  I  know  every  beach,  for  I  used  to  play  on  them 
when  a  boy." 

The  captain  looked  incredulous.  He  had  associated  him 
with  the  hunter  and  the  wilderness,  and  it  seemed  incredi- 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  411 

ble  that  he  should  have  been  born  where  he  said  he  was 
bora,  and  that  he  should  be  on  that  boat  that  night,  and  be 
discovered  by  the  merest  accident  at  the  very  instant  of 
supreme  peril. 

"  Cap'n,"  said  the  Old  Trapper,  who  had  drawn  nigh, 
"  cap'n,  whatever  the  Lad  says  ye  can  sartinly  take  for  gos- 
pel truth.  And  if  he  says  he  was  born  here,  he  was  born 
here ;  and  if  he  says  he  knows  this  shore,  he  does  know  it; 
and  ye  can  rely  on  him  to  do  what  he  says  he  can  do ;  for 
his  words  be  truth,  and  his  acts  be  like  his  words." 

"Young  man,"  said  the  captain,  "have  you  any  other 
friend  on  board  beside  this  hunter  ? " 

"  Sartiu  he  has,"  said  the  old  man,  answering  the  ques- 
tion for  the  Lad,  "  there  be  Henry  there,  who  has  boated 
with  him  and  camped  with  him  off  and  on,  and  the  Lad 
saved  his  life  once,  and  that's  a  sarvice  that  a  man  isn't  apt 
to  forgit.  Yis,  you  may  set  it  down,  cap'n,  that  Henry  and 
me  be  the  Lad's  friends." 

"  Call  him  here,"  said  the  captain,  hoarsely,  "  and  then  fol- 
low mo  to  the  pilot-house." 

It  was  with  the  greatest  effort  that  the  four  were  able  to 
reach  the  point  designated,  for  the  gale  was  blowing  with 
increased  violence,  and  the  iron  rod,  and  the  ropes  they 
grasped  to  steady  themselves,  were  already  hot ;  and  even 
as  they  reached  the  upper  deck  the  flames  broke  fiercely 
out  from  the  hatchways  and  the  fire  began  to  run  in  waver- 
ing lines  along  the  inner  timbers  of  the  bulwarks  and  the 
ornamental  edgings  of  the  upper  deck. 

"  I  have  called  you  here,"  said  the  captain,  "  to  ask  you 


412  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

in  the  presence  of  my  officers  if  there  is  any  safe  spot,  any 
cove  or  bay  into  which  the  steamer  can  be  run  along  the 
coast  abreast  of  us." 

"  Do  you  mean  to  beach  her,  captain  ?  "  asked  the  Lad. 

"  Yes,"  he  responded,  "  it  is  our  only  chance.  We  must 
beach  her.     Can  you  do  it  ? " 

"  I  can,"  said  the  Lad,  simply. 

"  You  can  !  "  exclaimed  the  captain,  "do  you  mean  to  say, 
young  man,  that  you  can  beach  this  steamer?  Gentlemen," 
he  continued,  as  he  turned  to  his  officers,  "  if  this  young 
man  can  do  what  he  says,  every  soul  can  be  saved." 

"  I  can  do  just  what  I  tell  you  I  can  do,"  said  the  Lad, 
"  that  is  if  the  engines  work,  and  we  can  fetch  her  around 
in  this  sea,  and  the  flames  don't  get  ahead  of  us  ;  for  there  is 
a  little  bay,  nearly  abreast  of  us,  and  the  water  is  deep  in 
it,  and  the  beach  is  free  from  rocks  and  stones,  and  I  can 
tell  the  pilot  just  where  to  steer  to  get  into  it." 

"  But,"  said  the  captain,  and  he  spoke  with  hurried  utter- 
ance, as  one  who  feels  there  isn't  a  moment  to  lose,  "  you 
ought  to  know,  and  your  friends  here  ought  to  know,  the 
danger  you  run,  for  the  flames  will  break  out  in  a  few  mo- 
ments. You  can  hear  them  roaring  under  deck  already. 
The  flames  will  break  out  in  a  moment,  I  say ;  this  pilot- 
house will  be  on  fire,  and  he  who  stands  beside  it  will  stand 
in  the  center  of  flames,  and  it  will  be  through  God's  mercy 
if  ho  comes  out  with  his  life.  I  feel  it  to  be  my  solemn 
duty  to  state  these  things  to  you,  young  man,  and  in  the 
presence  of  your  friends  who  are  interested  in  your  life. 
Now,  knowing  your  danger,  knowing  that  you  will  probably 


THE   MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  413 

lose  your  life,  I  ask  you  again,  will  you  pilot  this  steamer  to 
that  beach  ?  There  are  six  hundred  souls  on  board,  and  if 
you  do  it  you  will  be  their  saviour.    Will  you  do  it?  " 

The  Lad's  face  never  changed  a  muscle.  The  light  in  his 
eyes  may  possibly  have  darkened  a  little,  and  the  Old  Trap- 
per noted  that  his  long,  awkward  fingers  shut  into  their 
palms  with  a  slightly  tightened  grip,  but  his  voice  was  quiet 
as  ever,  as  he  said :  — 

"  I  will  help  you  beach  her,  captain." 

The  captain  hesitated  yet  a  moment.  He  knew  himself 
that  the  Lad  was  going  to  his  death,  —  going  with  a  quiet- 
ness that  could  have  only  ignorance  or  finest  heroism  for 
its  cause.  It  was  not  to  be  wondered  at,  that,  accepting  as 
he  was  the  sacrifice  of  a  life,  he  was  touched.  He  gazed  at 
the  singular  being  before  him,  observed  the  simple  guile- 
lessness  of  hi's  countenance,  and,  dashing  a  tear  from  his 
eye,  he  turned  to  the  Trapper  and  said :  — 

"  Old  man,  this  boy  is  your  companion,  and  you  love 
him?" 

"  Yis,  the  Lad  and  me  have  slept  together,  and  we've  eat- 
en from  the  same  bark,  and  he  and  me  has  done  leetle  sar- 
vices  for  each  other  that  men  in  the  woods  don't  forgit,  and 
I  guess  ye're  about  right,  cap'n,  when  ye  say  that  I  love  the 
Lad." 

"  God  forbid  ! "  exclaimed  the  captain,  "  God  forbid  that 
I  take  the  responsibility  of  the  sacrifice,  —  for  that's  just 
what  it  is,  old  man.    Oiight  the  boy  to  stay  ? " 

"  Sartin,  sartin,"  said  the  Trapper ;  "  if  the  Lad  can  save 
the  wimmen-folks  and  the  leetle  uus,  not  to  speak  of  the 


414  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

men,  by  stayiii'  here,  then  he  sartinly  ought  to  stay  even  if 
he  starts  on  his  last  trail  from  the  deck  of  a  vessel  instead 
of  fiom  the  shadow  of  the  pine ;  for  death  never  comes  too 
quick  to  one  who  meets  it  at  the  post  of  duty,  and  it  never 
comes  slow  enough  to  one  who  shirks.  Yis,  let  the  lad  stay 
where  he  is,  and  an  old  man  who  has  faced  death  on  many 
a  field  where  bullets  was  thick,  will  stand  by  his  side,  and 
the  Lord  of  Marcy  shall  do  with  us  as  he  will.  I  should 
liked  to  have  seed  the  pups  agin ;  but  the  Lord  will  take 
care  of  the  dogs." 

While  this  conversation  had  been  carried  on,  the  officers 
of  the  steamer  had  made  the  arrangements  necessary  to 
steer  the  craft  from  the  stern  ;  for  the  pilot-house  was  al- 
ready so  hot  as  to  make  it  unsafe  for  the  four  men  stationed 
at  the  wheel  to  remain  in  it  longer.  The  ropes  and  blocks 
had  been  adjusted,  the  purchase  tested,  and  the  steamer 
was  already  being  directed  from  behind.  The  captain  still 
stood  by  the  side  of  the  Lad,  trumpet  in  hand,  ready  to  give 
the  orders  to  veer  her  round. 

"Young  man,"  said  the  captain,  "you  are  pilot  now. 
When  shall  we  swing  her  about  ?  It's  a  rough  sea ;  but  the 
flames  give  us  no  choice." 

The  Lad  looked  steadfastly  a  moment  at  the  beacon  they 
had  passed,  asked  the  captain  a  question  as  to  her  course, 
and  then  said :  — 

11  We  are  passing  the  cove  !  We  mustn't  go  a  rod  farther ! 
Quick  !    Swing  her  round !  " 

The  captain  lifted  the  trumpet  to  his  lips,  and  in  tones 
that  rang  strong  and  clear  above  the  roar  of  the  storm  and 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  415 

of  the  flame,  shouted,  "  Hard  a-port  with  your  helm  !  Hard 
a-port,  I  tell  you  !    Jam  her  down  for  your  lives  ! " 

The  men  in  control  of  the  helm  obeyed  with  an  energy 
bom  of  the  peril  of  the  moment.  The  mighty  fabric  swayed 
for  a  moment,  but  tore  on  as  if  unwilling  to  yield.  But  the 
next  instant  the  immense  pressure  of  the  helm  hard  a-port 
began  to  tell,  and  the  monstrous  bulk  swung  slowly  about, 
rolled  downward  into  the  trough  of  the  sea  as  if  she  would 
never  rise,  reeled  over  as  she  met  the  mighty  wave  square 
amid-ship  till  her  larboard  rail  lay  deep  in  the  hissing  wa- 
ter, struggled  up,  righted  herself  laboriously  j  and  as  she 
straightened  her  course  with  the  gale  square  astern,  and 
with  her  steam  gauge  standing  at  seventy-five,  shot  toward 
the  shore  like  an  arrow  from  the  bow. 

"Cap'n,"  said  the  Trapper,  as  he  lowered  the  trumpet 
from  his  lips,  "give  ustheinstrerment,  and  do  ye  run  back 
there  and  keep  the  poor  creeturs  from  throwin'  themselves 
overboard,  —  for  they  be  gittin'  wild.  I  can  talk  through 
the  horn  as  well  as  ye  can,  —  and  the  Lad  will  tell  me  the 
words." 

"I  can't  leave  you,  old  man;  it  shall  never  be  said  that 
Charles  Stearns  left  two  brave  men  to  die  while  he  saved  his 
own  life." 

"  Cap'n,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  I  know  yer  feelin's ;  for 
I  see  the  stuff  ye  be  made  of;  but  the  Lord  appiuts  duty 
unto  man,  and  it's  not  of  his  choosin' ;  and  it's  yer  duty  to  go, 
and  ourn  to  stay.  Don't  ye  worry  about  us,  for  I  be  old  and 
a  few  days  more  or  less  on  the  arth  don't  matter,  and  I  can 
see  by  the  look  in  the  Lad's  face  that  he  be  ready.    So  give 


416  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

me  the  horn  and  you  go  where  you  oughter  go,  and  we'll 
stay  where  we  oughter  stay." 

The  old  man  had  uttered  these  words  with  such  solemn 
majesty,  and  the  truth  they  expressed  was  so  evident,  that 
the  captain  did  as  commanded.  He  passed  the  trumpet  to 
the  Trapper  and  started  aft,  where  his  presence  and  words 
soon  communicated  new  hope  to  the  terrified  throng.  In  a 
few  moments  the  shouting  and  screaming  ceased,  and  not  a 
sound  was  heard  save  the  roar  of  the  wind  and  the  waves 
and  the  flames. 

"  Henry,"  said  the  Trapper,  "  it's  time  ye  be  goin',  for  the 
fire  is  gittin'  hot.  It's  not  likely  that  me  and  the  Lad  will 
come  out  of  this ;  and  there  sartinly  isn't  much  time  for 
leave-takiu'.  Ye'll  go,  I  know,  and  get  the  pups,  and  the 
rifle,  aud  the  fiddle.  Ye  know  where  they  be.  And  if  there 
be  any  other  things  in  the  shanty  ye  would  like,  remember 
they  are  yourn.  This  sartinly  isn't  the  way  I  thought  things 
would  eend  ;  but  the  Lord  know*s  when  to  call,  and  I  daresay 
it's  best  as  it  is.  So,  boy,  jest  take  my  hand  a  minit'.  Ye 
needn't  distarb  the  Lad,  for  he  is  busy.  No,  jest  give  me 
yer  hand  for  a  minit',  and  then  go.  Ye  be  faithful  and  true, 
and  may  yer  days  be  happy  and  yer  life  long  on  the  'arth. 

"  I  am  not  going,  John  Norton,"  said  the  young  man. 

"  It  be  well  said,  boy,"  returned  the  Trapper.  "  Yis,  it  be 
well  said ;  or  would  be  if  things  was  different.  But  things 
bo  as  they  be,  and  ye  must  go." 

"  I  shall  not  go,"  said  Herbert. 

"  Henry  I "  exclaimed  the  old  man  earnestly,  "  this  is 
downright  foolishness.  Ye  can't  help  us  by  stayin' ;  and 
two'll  be  enough  if  wust  comes  to  wust." 


THE   MAN   THAT   DIDN'T   KNOW   MUCH.  417 

"  John  Norton,"  returned  the  young  man  solemnly,  "say 
no  more.  I  shall  stay  with  you  and  the  Lad.  If  ws  live, 
all  will  live.  If  we  die,  we  will  die  together,  for  I  will  not 
leave  you." 

"  Be  it  as  ye  say  then,  boy ;  yis,  let  it  be  as  ye  say.  This 
is  i\3  time  for  words ;  and  I  can  understand  yer  feelin's ; 
and  it  may  be  ye  be  right.  The  Lad  and  we  met  at  the 
pond  of  the  beavers,  and  it  may  be  best  we  both  go  with 
him  to  the  eend  of  the  trail." 

In  a  moment  the  old  man  said,  suddenly :  "  Henry,  if  ye 
could  git  one  of  them  water-pipes,  and  the  pumps  are  still 
a-goin',  it  may  be  ye  could  save  our  lives.  But  be  careful 
where  ye  go,  boy,  for  it's  hot  there  ahead." 

Lightning  is  scarce  quicker  than,  was  the  motion  of  Her- 
bert, as  he  darted  forward  into  the  smoke,  which  was  rolling 
up  in  great  volumes  from  the  front  part  of  the  boat. 

By  this  time  the  forward  half  of  the  vessel  was  almost 
one  sheet  of  flame. 

A  column  of  lire  rose  out  of  the  forward  hatch  fifty  feet 
into  the  air,  but  was  mercifully  blown  onward  by  the  force 
of  the  gale.  From  this  the  Trapper  and  the  Lad  were  at 
least  safe,  but  the  flames  were  now  breaking  over  all  re- 
straint. The  deck  itself  was  being  burnt  through  and  sec- 
tions were  falling  into  the  hold.  The  stanchions  and  timbers 
of  the  bulwarks  were  already  in  full  blaze.  The  outer 
edges  of  the  upper  deck  were  girdled  with  fire.  The  roof 
of  the  pilot-house  had  begun  to  kindle.  The  flames  were 
already  eating  their  way  toward  the  stern  and  would  soon 
be  in  the  rear  of  the  two  men  who  were  standing  half  hid- 


418  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

den  in  smoke  at  a  point  which  would  then  be  the  very  cen- 
ter of  the  conflagration.  But  they  never  flinched.  They 
stood  in  the  exact  position  where  they  were  when  Henry 
left  them ;  the  Trapper  still  holding  the  trumpet  in  his  hand, 
and  the  Lad  still  gazing  steadfastly  ahead. 

"  Tell  them  to  port  two  points,"  said  the  Lad  quietly. 
The  old  man  placed  the  trumpet  to  his  lips  and  thiough 
the  brazen  tube  his  voice  poured  steady  and  strong :  — 
"  The  boy  says  '  Tell  'em  to  port  two  p'ints. " 
The  vessel  swayed  suddenly  to  port;  and  as  she  leapt 
away  the  Lad  said :  — 
"  Tell  them  to  hold  her  steady  as  she  is." 
Again  the  old  man  lifted  the  trumpet  and  called :  — 
"  The  boy  says  '  tell  them  to  hold  her  steady  as  she  is.' " 
For  a  minute  not  a  word  was  spoken.    The  steamer  tore 
on  through  the  gloom,  lighting  her  path  with  her  flames. 
The  roof  of  the  pilot-house  dropped  in,  and  the  smoke  aDd 
cinders  hid  the  two  men  from  the  sight  of  those  who,  with 
prayers  on  their  lips  and  agonized  faces,  were  gazing  at  them 
from  behind. 

Suddenly  out  of  the  smoke  and  the  fire  came  the  tones 
of  the  trumpet :  — 

"  The  Lad  says  '  tell  'em  I  hear  the  surf  on  the  beach?  " 
Then  the  smoke  suddenly  lifted,  split  by  a  gust  that  tore 
through  the  air,  and  those  behind  saw  three  men  instead  oi 
two  standing  on  the  deck.  The  Trapper  and  the  Lad  still 
at  their  station,  and  thirty  feet  farther  aft,  Herbert,  hose  in 
hand  flooding  with  water  the  blazing  deck  on  which  they 
stood.    But  what  could  the  power  of  man  do  against  the , 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  419 

rush  of  such  flames  ?  The  young  man  did  his  best.  With 
hands  blistered  by  the  awful  heat  he  stood  heroically  at  his 
post;  but  the  garments  of  the  Lad  were  on  fire,  and  the 
hair  of  the  Trapper  was  burnt  to  the  scalp. 

Suddenly  the  starboard  half  of  the  upper  deck  fell  with 
a  crash.  As  it  fell  those  behind  saw  the  Lad  turn  to  the 
Trapper, —  saw  him  totter  —  saw  him  steady  himself —  saw 
his  companion  catch  him  by  the  arm  —  saw  the  old  hero, 
with  the  sleeve  of  his  coat,  that  was  itself  smoking,  wipe 
the  cinders  from  his  lips  as  he  lifted  the  trumpet  to  his 
mouth ;  and  out  of  the  black,  eddying  smoke  as  it  swept 
over  the  three  and  hid  them  from  sight,  bellowed  the  words 
strong  as  trumpet  could  send  them :  — 

"  The  Lad  says  '  tell  them  I  see  the  surf  on  the  beach  ! 
Hold  her  steady  as  she  is  !  God  "  — 

The  sentence  was  never  completed.  The  flat  bottom  ot 
the  vessel  touched  the  sand  —  slid  along  it — and  was 
driven  by  the  momentum  of  her  movement  half  her  length 
up  the  beach.  Then  she  rolled  over  with  a  great  lurch ;  her 
smoke-stacks  went  down  with  a  crash,  carrying  the  upper 
deck  on  which  they  stood  with  them,  and  the  three  men 
sank  from  sight  in  the  smoke  and  fire. 


CHAPTER    VII. 
THE  LAD  GOES  HOME. 

"  With  mast,  and  helm,  and  pennon  fair, 

That  well  had  borne  their  part — 
But  the  noblest  thing  that  perished  there 

Was  that  young,  faithful  heart  I " 

—  Mrs.  Hemans. 

TT  was  evening  of  the  second  day  after  the  catastrophe. 
Only  a  few  of  -  the  passengers  had  been  lost,  and  the 
majority  of  those  who  were  saved  had  gone  on  their  sev- 
eral ways ;  hut  nearly  a  hundred  still  tarried,  finding  accom- 
modation in  the  farm  houses  along  the  shore  and  in  the  ad- 
joining village.  The  noblest  of  motives  held  them  to  the 
neighborhood,  for  he  who  had  saved  them  was  dying. 

In  a  house  that  stood  fifty  rods  from  the  wreck,  lay  the 
Lad  stretched  on  a  bed.  His  body  was  in  a  pitiable  condi- 
tion ;  for  the  flesh  of  it  in  spots  was  burnt  to  the  bone. 
With  him  was  the  Trapper  and  Herbert.  The  head  of  the 
former  was  bandaged,  and  the  hands  of  the  latter  were 
packed.  They  had  been  saved  by  the  merest  accident  j  if 
that  which  gives  or  takes  life  can  be  so  called.  As  the 
smoke-stacks  fell  when  the  vessel  struck  the  beach,  the 
section  of  the  upper  deck  on  which  they  were  standing 
had  been  thrown  upward  and  outward ;  and  the  three  had 
been  actually  cast  with  the  burning  fragments  upon  the 
Band. 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  421 

The  Trapper  and  Herbert,  although  at  first  stunned,  had 
been  able  to  drag  themselves  and  the  Lad,  who  was  insen- 
sible, from  the  neighborhood  of  the  flames.  They  speedily- 
recovered  their  strength ;  but  the  Lad  did  not  revive.  He 
still  breathed ;  but  the  life  within  his  poor  body  held  but  a 
feeble  hold,  and  at  every  breath  it  drew  seemed  on  the 
point  of  taking  i  ts  final  departure.  His  senses  wandered, 
as  if  the  faculties  of  his  mind  shared  the  misfortune  of  his 
mortal  frame.  All  that  skill  could  do  had  been  done.  But 
human  skill  was  powerless  to  arrest  the  flight  of  his  spirit 
from  a  tenement  which  had  been  so  rudely  assaulted  that 
it  could  no  longer  furnish  the  life  that  had  tabernacled  in 
it  with  the  accommodation  it  needed.  The  most  that  the 
attendant  physician  could  offer  in  the  way  of  comfort  to 
the  two  men,  who  with  stricken  hearts  watched  by  the 
bedside,  was  contained  in  the  assurance  that  he  was  wholly 
free  from  suffering ;  and  would  probably  revive,  and  enjoy 
the  use  of  his  senses  for  a  brief  period  before  he  passed 
away.  In  hope  of  this,  rather  than  from  any  expectation 
that  he  would  recover,  his  two  companions  kept  their 
steady  vigil  by  his  bed. 

It  was  evening,  and  outside  the  house  nature  displayed 
the  quiet  and  solemn  splendor  of  an  autumnal  night.  The 
full-orbed  moon  hung  in  the  eastern  sky,  and  her  mellow 
radiance  bathed  the  rippling  surface  of  the  shining  sea  in 
floods  of  glistening  sheen.  The  light  waves  broke  in  meas- 
ured murmurs  on  the  silent  shore.  In  the  blue  sky  were 
the  pale  stars,  and  the  moon's  splendor  lay  softly  on  the 
white  sands,  and  the  rocks,  the  trees,  the  fences,  and  the 


422  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

aftermath  of  the  frosty  fields.  Surely  nature  is  unconscious 
of  human  suffering ;  or  else  has  in  her  frame  something  of 
tbat  universal  consciousness  which  knows  that  out  of  the 
troubles  of  life  the  anxious  and  the  suffering  pass  at  length 
into  eternal  peace. 

Inside  the  house  lay  the  Lad,  —  his  head,  which  fortu- 
nately had  not  been  touched  by  the  fire,  supported  by  a 
pillow  scarce  whiter  than  his  face,  his  limbs  straightened 
as  if  in  repose,  and  his  long,  awkward-looking  hands  crossed 
restfully  on  his  breast,  in  which  the  pulse  of  life  beat  faintly. 
Herbert  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  bed,  and  the  Trapper  sat 
at  its  side.  Farther  away  stood  the  physician,  and  the 
captain  of  the  steamer,  who  had  shared  with  an  equal  con- 
stancy the  watch  of  those  whose  eyes  scarcely  wandered 
from  the  face  of  the  unfortunate  boy.  Thus  in  silence  the 
four  stood,  waiting  for  the  change  which  they  hoped  and 
prayed  might  come ;  that  out  of  it  they  might  receive 
strength  to  speak  with  calmness  the  last  farewell. 

Suddenly  the  Lad's  lips  opened,  though  his  eyes  still 
remained  closed,  and  he  murmured,  "  Crazy  John  said  my 
grave  should  be  with  a  grave."  And  a  look  almost  like 
that  of  smiles  came  to  his  features  as  he  -repeated,  "  My 
grave  should  be  with  a  grave." 

It  was  the  first  time  he  had  spoken,  even  in  his  wander- 
ings, for  hours ;  and  the  Old  Trapper  and  Herbert  exchang- 
ed glances,  while  the  physician  and  the  captain  drew  nearer 
to  the  bed.  In  a  moment  his  lips  parted  again,  and  he  said 
—  while  the  smile  on  his  features  gave  place  to  a  look  of 
pain :  — 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  423 

"  Why  do  they  all  laugh  at  me  ?  Everybody  laughs  at  me 
but  mother  and  John  Norton  and  Herbert.  Father  used  to 
laugh  at  me ;  but  John  Norton  never  laughed  at  me.  He 
and  Herbert  only  laughed  at  me  once.  They  laughed  at  me 
at  the  pond  of  the  beavers.  Where  is  the  pond  of  the  bea- 
vers? Let  me  see,  —  let  me  see,  —  it  is  so  thick  with 
smoke  that  I  can't  see  the  pond  of  the  beavers.  Mother, 
did  you  tell  them,  when  they  laughed  at  me  at  the  pond  of 
the  beavers,  that  they  musn't  laugh  any  more  at  me ! " 

Here  he  stopped,  while  the  men  looking  on  held  their 
breath,  and  not  a  sound  was  heard  but  the  tick,  tick,  tick 
of  the  little  clock  that  stood  on  the  mantle.  It  may  have 
been  five  minutes  that  the  silence  lasted ;  and  then  he  mur- 
mured again :  — 

"  The  captain  said  that  there  are  six  hundred  souls  to  be 
saved.  Let  me  see — -how  many  are  six  hundred  souls  ?  — 
Mother,  can't  you  tell  me  how  many  six  hundred  souls  are? 

—  Are  they  so  many  as  that !  —  I  think  I  ought  to  be  will- 
ing to  die  if  I  can  save  six  hundred  souls,  —  don't  you, 
mother  ? "  And  then  his  speech  sank  until  it  became  inar- 
ticulate, only  now  and  then  as  they  watched  his  moving 
lips  they  caught  the  words,  "  six  hundred  —  six  hundred  — 
souls." 

Again  a  long  silence  ensued ;  but  after  a  while  he  said, 
while  a  look  of  firmness  came  mto  his  face,  "  How  hot  it  is  ! 

—  I  didn't  think  fire  could  burn  so ;  —  but  I  musn't  show 
it  —  no,  I  mustn't  show  it."  And  his  fingers  tightened  on 
the  coverlid  as  if  he  were  making  an  heroic  effort  at  self 
control. 


424  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

And  so  his  mind  wandered, — wandered  back  to  his  boy- 
hood ;  wandered  back  to  the  life  he  lived  with  his  mother. 
And  then  he  talked  of  the  woods ;  talked  about  his  traps ; 
talked  of  the  life  he  had  lived  with  the  Trapper ;  talked 
about  Herbert,  and  wondered  if  he  would  ever  come.  And 
so  in  a  wild,  senseless,  touching  way  his  mind  wandered 
over  the  past,  and  his  tongue,  unconscious  of  its  speech,  re- 
hearsed the  fragments  of  his  experiences.  Then  he  fell 
into  a  sleep  deep  and  heavy.  His  breathings  were  regular 
and  strong.  He  slept  for  an  hour  as  a  weary  man  sleeps 
after  toil.    And  the  physician  said :  — 

"  When  he  wakes  he  will  wake  with  his  senses,  if  he 
wake  at  all." 

And  thus  they  stood  and  watched  him  with  faces  that 
showed  their  anxiety.  Watched  and  waited ;  —  watched 
and  had  their  reward.  For  suddenly  he  moved  uueasily ; 
drew  a  long  breath ;  opened  his  eyes ;  looked  at  the  Trap- 
per and  at  Herbert.  And  as  his  eyes  came  back  to  the 
countenance  of  the  old  man  who  sat  by  his  side,  he  smiled, 
and  said :  — 

"  John  Norton  !    Henry !  " 

"  Yis,"  said  the  Trapper ;  "  yis,  Lad,  me  and  Henry  be 
here."  He  said  no  more,  for  as  he  said  it  he  choked ;  and 
the  sentence  ended  with  a  sob. 

For  a  minute  the  Lad  made  no  reply.  Ho  gazed  into  the 
faces  of  the  Trapper  and  Henry  with  a  look  of  unutterable 
love,  —  a  look  that  took  the  place  of  speecb,  and  did  what 
words  could  not  do  ;  for  it  expressed  to  the  two  men  that 
saw  it  the  depth  of  his  affection  for  them. 


THE   MAN   THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  425 

u  How  many  were  saved  ? ' '  said  the  Lad. 

The  captain  took  a  step  forward,  and  said  :  "Nearly  all, 
boy  j  nearly  all.  You  saved  them  nearly  all."  And  the  fea- 
tures of  the  great,  strong  man  convulsed,  and  the  tears 
broke  from  his  eyes. 

"  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  after  a  moment's  pause,  during 
which  he  had  regained  his  composure,  "  there  be  something 
that  must  be  said,  and  it  may  be  best  that  I  say  it  now,  for 
the  minits  be  passin'  and  perhaps  ye  may  have  somthin'  to 
tell  us.  Lad,"  and  here  he  faltered  a  moment,  "  Lad,  ye 
have  come  to  the  eend  of  the  trail  and  yer  feet  be  on  the 
edge  of  the  Great  ClearinV 

"  Do  you  mean  I  am  dying,  John  Norton  ? "  said  the  Lad. 

"  That's  what  men  call  it,  boy, — that's  sartinly  what  men 
call  it.    Yis,  the  doctor  here  says  ye  be  dyin'." 

For  a  moment  the  youth  fixed  his  gaze  on  the  ceiling  as 
one  might  who  is  lost  in  reflection,  and  then  his  eyes  fell 
until  they  rested  on  the  countenance  of  the  Trapper,  and  he 
said,  in  his  own  simple  manner :  — 

"  I  am  not  afraid  to  die,  John  Norton." 

"  I  know  no  reason  why  ye  should  be,  Lad.  I've  thought 
the  matter  over  from  beginnin'  to  eend  sence  I  sot  by  the 
bed  here,  and  I  sartinly  know  no  reason  why  ye  should  be, 
for  ye  have  done  no  evil  on  the  'arth  and  yer  sperit  is  inno- 
cent ;  and  if  ye  had  been  faulty  the  Lord  would  remember 
the  deed  ye  have  did  and  jedge  ye  in  marcy." 

Again  he  paused  a  moment  and  then  the  old  man  said, 
tenderly :  — 

"  Is  there  anythin'  ye  would  tell  us,  Lad  ?  —  anything  ye 


426  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

would  like  done,  ye  know,  for  it  be  the  duty  of  the  livin'  to 
sarve  the  dead,  and  Henry  and  me  be  here,  and  our  ears  be 
open  to  yer  words." 

"  Are  any  of  my  folks  living  here  now,  John  Norton  ? " 
asked  the  Lad. 

"  No,  yer  folks  be  not  here,  boy ;  they  moved  away  years 
ago,  and  no  one  knows  where  they  went.  No,  boy,  not  one 
of  yer  kindred  be  here." 

"  'Tis  well,"  said  the  Lad,  "  mother's  grave  is  here,  that  is 
enough.  You  will  find  it  to  the  left  of  the  big  pine  that 
stands  in  the  south-east  comer  of  the  graveyard.  I  told  you 
the  name,  you  know.  You  will  lay  my  body  there,  John 
Norton." 

"  It  shall  be  done  as  ye  say,"  returned  the  Trapper. 

The  Lad  remained  silent  a  moment,  engaged  in  thought, 
and  then  he  said,  "  I  want  you  to  take  the  rifle,  John  Nor- 
ton, and  Sport,  for  they  will  be  of  some  service  to  you." 

"  Yis,  the  dog  will  be  of  sarvice,  for  sartin,  for  he's  stanch 
and  his  nose  is  a  good  'un,  and  Eover  is  gittin'  on  in  years, 
and  can't,  in  the  natur'  of  things,  hold  out  much  longer. 
I've  noted  that  he  lagged  this  fall  in  the  races.  Yis,  I  would 
like  the  dog,  and  he  will  be  a  great  comfort  to  me,  boy, 
after  ye  are  gone,  for  the  cabin  will  seem  empty  next  win- 
ter. The.  thoughts  of  the  old  be  apt  to  be  lonely,  and  the 
presence  of  the  dog  will  shorten  the  evenings  and  make 
the  shanty  more  homelike.  But  as  for  the  rifle,  which  is 
but  leetle  better  than  a  miser'ble  gun,  sence  it  loads  at  the 
wrong  eend,  and  has  a  mind  of  its  own  about  goin'  off, — so 
that  while  I'll  allow  it  has  a  long  range  and  shoots  where 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  427 

ye  hold  it,  yit  it  can't  be  depended  on,  as  ye  know,  boy,  and 
is  of  no  use  to  a  hunter  like  me  whose  ranges  be  short  and 
and  will  git  shorter  as  my  eyes  grow  dim.  But  on  the  tar- 
get  ground  of  the  settlements,  which  Henry  has  told  us 
about,  where  they  shoot  furder  than  a  man  can  see,  the  gun 
is  a  good  un ;  Henry  thinks  one  of  the  best,  if  not  the  best, 
ever  made.  And  so,  Lad,  while  I  don't  want  to  argue  agin 
yer  wishes  or  seem  ongrateful,  yit  in  the  natur'  of  things  it 
sartinly  looks  as  if  I  had  better  have  the  dog  and  Henry 
the  gun." 

"  I  think  you  are  right,  John  Norton,"  said  the  Lad,  in  a 
feeble  but  pleased  tone,  "you  are  always  right.  Yes,  Henry, 
you  take  the  rifle  I  won  at  the  match,  and  I  know  you  will 
win  many  prizes  with  it,  and  when  you  use  it  on  the  match- 
ground,  and  the  people  are  all  standing  round,  and  the  rich 
and  the  great  looking  on,  as  you  told  us,  you  must  think  of 
me,  for  you  will  never  know  how  much  I  love  you.  Mother 
first,  John  Norton  next,  and  then  you.  Yes,  that's  the  way 
it  has  been.  Mother  first,  John  Norton  next,  and  then 
you." 

"  I  will  take  the  rifle  and  keep  it,  Lad,  as  your  gift  to 
me,"  Herbert  said ;  "  the  gift  of  a  man  who  saved  my  life, 
and  who  has  taught  me  the  beauty  of  innocence  and  the 
wisdom  of  a  pure  mind,  as  man  never  taught  me  before." 
And  he  looked  at  the  Lad's  sweet  face  with  eyes  blinded 
with  tears. 

"  I  don't  think  that  you  could  ever  have  learned  anything 
from  me,  Henry,"  responded  the  Lad ;  "  for  you  are  learned 
and  I  am  ignorant.    John  Norton  is  wise  and  I  am  foolish. 


428  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

And  they  all  used  to  tell  me  I  didn't  know  much ;  and  I 
know  they  were  right,  for  I  never  was  cunning  as  the  other 
boys ;  and  I  had  a  hard  time  to  learn  even  to  read.  But 
mother  told  me  I  could  Jearn  if  I  tried  hard  enough,  and  I 
did  try  real  hard.  And  in  two  years  I  could  read  the  Tes- 
tament through  without  making  a  siugle  mistake ;  and  I 
remember  how  pleased  mother  was  when  I  did  it." 

"  Lad,"  said  the  Trapper,  gravely,  "  I've  lived  beyend  the 
limits  of  man's  days,  and  I've  seed  many  of  the  wise  and 
the  great  of  the  'arth,  and  many  that  was  foolish,  and  my 
eyes  have  been  open  to  what  they  have  seed ;  and  I've  noted 
that  some  lam  from  books,  and  some  laru  from  natur',  and 
some  know  without  larnin'.  Yis,  some  make  themselves 
wise  by  readiu'  and  seein'  and  thinkin'.  And  others 
be  born  wise ;  for  they  know  good  from  evil,  and  they  strike 
the  trail  right  every  time,  and  from  cradle  to  grave  never 
lose  the  line  of  the  blazin'.  But  there  aint  many  of  this 
kind  j  no,  there  be  but  few  that  are  born  wise ;  but  ye  was 
oue  of  'em.  Yis,  Lad,  ye  was  sartinly  one  of  'em  ;  for  the 
Lord  gin  ye  somethin'  better  than  the  knowin'  head  and  the 
cunnin'  tongue ;  for  he  gave  ye  a  heart  to  love  right  and 
to  hate  wrong,  and  he  made  ye  marciful  to  them  that  do 
evil  and  treated  ye  onkindly ;  and  he  gin  ye  courage  to 
die  like  a  chief  without  tremblin'  or  talkin'  when  the  time 
he  had  sot  for  yer  death-hour  had  come.  And  more  than  all 
of  the  wise  and  the  great  I  have  known,  Lad,  I  think  ye 
was  favored  by  yer  Maker." 

The  Old  Trapper  had  said  this  with  the  decision  and  maj- 
esty of  a  man  who  speaks  from  deliberation,  and  is  express- 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T   KNOW  MUCH.  429 

ing  the  judgment  of  a  mind  which,  naturally  able,  had  re- 
ceived and  been  profited  by  the  lessons  of  a  long  and  varied 
experience.    A  moment  after  he  had  paused  the  Lad  said : 

"There  is  something  else  I  want  to  speak  about,  John 
Norton." 

"  Yis,"  returned  the  Trapper,  "  I  know  there  be  somethin' 
else.  What  do  you  wish  done  with  it?  Speak  the  word 
boy,  and  it  shall  be  done  as  ye  say,  whatever  be  the  orders 
or  however  fur  yer  arrand  takes  me." 

The  Lad  looked  at  the  Trapper  and  made  a  slight  motion 
of  his  wrist  toward  him ;  aud  then  he  looked  at  Henry  and 
made  the  same  motion. 

"  Which  ? "  said  the  Trapper. 

"  Both,"  replied  the  Lad,  softly. 

Both  knew  what  he  meant.  Both  knew  how  he  loved  it. 
Both  knew  what  a  testimony  he  was  giving  them  of  the 
depth  of  his  affection,  in  thus  making  them  joint  heirs  and 
custodians  of  that  which  had  been  to  him  what  the  harp 
was  to  the  dumb  angel :  the  source  of  joy  inexpressible, 
the  one  precious  medium  through  which  that  in  him  in 
which  he  was  superior  to  others  might  pour  itself  forth 
with  such  volume  of  evidence  that  none  could  dispute,  and 
which  being  admitted  gave  him  at  once  rank  and  prece- 
dence among  men. 

"  It  is  well  settled,  Lad,"  slowly  and  solemnly  answered 
the  Trapper,  after  his  mind  had  canvassed  the  matter  a 
moment.  "Yis,  it  is  well  settled.  It  shall  stay  in  the 
cabin  till  I  go ;  then  Henry  shall  take  it  j  and  when  he 
comes  on  and  jines  us,  he  shall  do  with  it  what  seems  best 


430  -  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

in  his  jedgment.  Is  that  as  it  should  be,  Lad?  Is  that 
what  ye  mean  ? " 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Lad,  feebly  j  "  that  is  the  way  I  wish  it  to 
be.    That  is  what  I  mean." 

Here  the  conversation  ended,  for  the  Lad  had  grown  fee- 
bler as  it  progressed,  and  the  last  words  had  been  spoken 
scarcely  above  a  whisper.  He  had  disposed  of  his  earthly 
possessions.  The  things  that  he  loved  he  had  given  to  the 
two  men  he  loved,  and  as  if  he  was  conscious  that  he  had 
done  with  the  earth  his  mind  retired  within  itself,  and  he 
lay  with  a  look  on  his  face  that  showed  he  still  had  the  use 
of  his  faculties  but  through  them  was  communing  only  with 
the  invisible. 

The  medical  attendant  looked  significantly  at  Herbert, 
and  moving  within  reach  of  the  Trapper,  touched  him  softly 
on  the  arm.  The  old  man,  whose  eyes  had  not  moved  from 
the  countenance  of  the  Lad,  nodded  his  head  as  evidence 
that  he  understood  the  communication.  The  life  that  had 
been  peaceful — that  had  been  filled  with  the  peace  of  inno- 
cence— was  drawing  to  a  peaceful  close.  The  departure  of 
so  simple  a  spirit  from  its  mortal  frame,  the  rising  of  so 
sweet  a  soul  as  it  left  the  earth  to  appear  in  the  presence 
of  its  Maker,  could  not  be  attended  with  any  sudden  or  start- 
ling manifestation.  He  opened  his  eyes  only  once  more; 
looked  for  a  moment  into  the  face  of  Herbert,  turned  them 
upon  the  countenance  of  the  Trapper,  held  them  there  for 
an  instant  as  if  taking  in  every  feature  of  the  face  he  had 
loved  so  well, — as  though  he  would  fix  the  loved  lineaments 
indelibly  on  his  memory  for  the  long  parting,  and  then  he 


THE  MAN  THAT  DIDN'T  KNOW  MUCH.  431 

lifted  them  upward,  and  while  the  light  of  a  deep  joy  dark- 
ened in  their  depths,  —  the  joy  of  a  recognition  of  some 
one  he  had  expected  to  see  with  too  sincere  a  faith  to  be 
surprised  at  meeting,  said,  as  naturally  as  a  child  might 
say  it  on  the  earth :  — 

"  Mother ! " 

And  then  the  gray  film  that  gathers  sooner  or  later  over 
all  mortal  orbs  formed  suddenly  over  his.  And  thus  with- 
out pang  or  motion  his  spirit  passed  away.  And  there  in 
the  farm-house  by  the  sea,  near  the  beach  where  he  played 
when  a  boy,  and  the  grave  of  his  mother,  "  The  Man  "Who 
Didn't  Know  Much  "  lay  dead. 


SKETCHES. 


ADIRONDACK  LETTERS. 
I. 

EN  ROUTE. 

"  Let  Hercules  himself  do  what  he  may, 
The  cat  will  mew,  and  dog  will  have  his  day." 

Shakespeare. 

TZTEKE  I  am  at  the  half-way  house,  between  Keesville  and 
Martin's,  on  Lake  Saranac,  waiting  for  dinner.  You  can 
imagine  my  feelings,  for  I  am  all  emptiness,  and  don't  know 
what  has  become  of  myself.  Indeed,  I  feel  as  if  I  am  only 
the  case  in  which  I  once  was,  but  am  no  more, —  I  myself 
having  slipped  out  like  a  razor  from  his  shell,  and  been  left 
along  the  road  in  little  bits  at  a  time  for  the  last  fifteen  or 
twenty  miles.  I  am  actually  hollow.  I  am  like  a  tin  canis- 
ter with  nothing  in  it,  or  a  pepper  box  from  which  the  pep- 
per has  all  been  sifted.  Outwardly  I  look  just  as  I  did  after 
breakfast  at  the  Van  Ness  House,  in  Burlington,  at  six 
o'clock  this  morning ;  but  inwardly  I  am  not  the  same.  I 
know  that  I  should  look  as  I  feel,  but  I  can't.  If  I  did  — . 
Dinner !     Hurrah ! 

It 's  done.  I  have  eaten!  I  am  full!  I  feel  natural-like 
I  am  actually  heavier  on  my  legs,  perceptibly  so,  than  I  was 
twenty  minutes  ago.    I  can  turn  round  and  keep  my  bal- 


436  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

ance  like  a  top  that  isn't  all  point  and  shank.  I  can  put  my 
hands  on  either  side  of  my  body  and  press  myself  without 
fear  that  they  will  meet  in  the  middle  of  me.  What  a  glo- 
rious thing  corporosity  is !  I  understand  now  what  Hamlet 
had  in  mind  when  he  said  to  his  Father's  shade :  "  Poor 
ghost."  He  pitied  it  because  it  hadn't  any  body.  It  was 
thin,  unsubstantial,  hollow,  as  a  man  who  has  ridden  in  a 
stage-coach  twenty  miles  over  a  plank  road  before  dinner. 
I  know  how  a  ghost  feels  when  he  is  floating  about,  light  as 
a  feather,  and  I  feel  the  fine  discrimination  shown  in  Ham- 
let's remark. 

But  how  glorious  is  man's  estate  after  he  has  eaten  a  good 
dinner  !  What  solid  dignity  he  has  attained ;  what  a  satis- 
factory sense  of  substantialness  is  his  ;  how  the  blessed  feel- 
ing of  fulness  adds  to  his  self-respect ;  and  with  what  an 
unctuous  complacency  he  can  regard  his  fellow  men.  A  full 
stomach  is  the  very  mother  of  sweetest  charity. 

But  the  dinner,  —  let  me  tell  you  about  that ;  for  there  is 
a  great  difference  in  dinners.  Some  are  lean,  others  are  tat. 
Some  are  only  tormenting  suggestions  of  what  a  meal  should 
be,  while  others  are  real,  solid,  satisfactory.  Now,  this  din- 
ner was  a  dinner  that  was  a  dinner.  It  was  not  a  prophetic 
affair,  but  an  actual  realization  —  a  fruition  of  the  appetite 
—  heaven  to  the  stomach.  The  bell  rung,  not  with  a  little, 
thin,  dyspeptic  tintillation,  but  with  a  hearty,  full-toned 
sound,  as  if  it  appreciated  our  hunger  and  was  gladly  con- 
scious of  the  benevolence  of  its  summons.  It  was  not  a 
mere  ring.  It  had  a  language  in  its  call,  and  said :  "  Come 
on  and  eat  your  fill !  come  on  and  eat  your  fill !  "  in  a  deep, 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.         437 

jovial  tone,  that  made  you  feel  that  the  house  was  full  of 
food  from  cellar  to  attic.  Such  a  summons  always  starts 
me.  To  me  it  sounds  like  the  voice  of  duty,  which  admits 
of  no  refusal.    I  was  at  the  table  in  an  instant. 

I  slid  into  my  chair  as  quick  as  an  otter  slides  into  a 
creek.  The  serving  girl  was  at  my  elbow  in  a  wink.  She 
said :  — 

u  Eoast-beef-roast-mutton-ham-and-eggs  and-trout  !  " 

I  looked  at  her  with  my  face  all  beaming,  and  said :  — 

"Yes." 

She  stared  at  me.  I  beamed  again,  and  she  vanished  to- 
ward the  kitchen  with  a  strange  look  on  her  face.  But  she 
understood,  that  girl  did.  She  felt  the  emphasis  of  my  ex- 
pression, and  began  to  bring  on  the  food.  The  roast  beef 
was  good,  the  roast  mutton  better,  the  ham  and  eggs  simply 
delicious.  The  trout  looked  a  little  suspicious  — they  seemed 
rather  thin  and  old,  as  if  they  had  been  kept  a  long  time 
for  company,  like  the  politicians'  reform  principles ;  —  but  I 
took  them  in  —  the  trout  I  mean.    Then  she  said :  — 

"  Coffee  or  tea  ?  " 

I  said :  — 

"  Both." 

Two  cups  were  brought  full  of — something.  The  color 
of  the  liquids  was  identical.  It  didn't  taste  like  coffee.  I 
tasted  the  other.  It  didn't  taste  like  tea  or  coffee  either.  I 
did  not  like  to  show  my  ignorance,  but  I  was  compelled  to 
do  it.  I  was  for  once  fairly  cornered,  and  said,  looking  her 
mildly  in  the  face :  — 

"  My  dear  girl,  can  you  tell  me  which  is  the  tea  and  which 
is  the  cofffee  ? " 


438  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

She  looked  at  the  two  cups.  She  lifted  one  to  her  nose 
and  smelt  of  it.  Then  she  lifted  the  other  and  smelt  of 
that.  Then  she  lifted  both  and  inspected  them  critically. 
Then  she  put  them  both  down  on  the  table  and  started  to 
call  her  mother.  She  was  evidently  puzzled.  She  had  prob- 
ably never  had  such  a  question  propounded  to  her  before. 
I  felt  as  T  looked  at  her  that  it  was  a  question  beyond  her 
years.    I  said :  — 

"Never  mind,  don't  feel  badly  over  it.  When  you  get 
older  you  will  know  more,  or  perhaps  you  can  have  the  cups 
marked,  so  there  can  be  no  mistake."  She  smiled —  a  smile 
that  began  at  the  corner  of  her  mouth,  crept  round  the 
curve  of  her  lips,  clomb  up  a  stairway  of  laughing  lines 
into  her  eyes,  and  finally  broke  in  light  all  over  her  face. 
She  was  happy  again,  and  coming  close  up  to  my  chair,  said 
interrogatively :  — 

"Pies?" 

I  fairly  jumped.  She  had  touched  an  hereditary  weak- 
ness. "When  was  there  ever  a  time  when  one  of  my  name 
would  not  eat  pie  ?  I  turned  around  in  my  chair  and  ex- 
claimed :  — 

"  Have  you  pies  in  this  house  ? " 

Her  answer  electrified  me.  It  came  out  of  her  mouth 
like  walnuts  out  of  their  shells,  when  the  bough  is  shak- 
en:— 

"  Easpberry,  blackberry,  apple,  custard  and  mince  pie." ! 

I  looked  at  her  as  at  one  who  should  bring  news  of  the 
millennium,  — 

"  Bring  them  on ! "  I  shouted,  "  bring  them  all  on  ! " 


LETTERS   FROM   THE   WILDERNESS.  439 

Five  kinds  of  pie  all  before  me  at  once,  and  each  better 
than  the  other  —  when  have  I  seen  such  a  sigbt  ?  Those 
pies  came  but  they  never  returned.  Oh !  the  pleasure  of 
eating  one  piece  and  tben  seeing  four  more  pieces  left  un- 
touched! Never  have  I  had  such  a  feast  since,  when  a 
youugster,  I  used  to  steal  a  whole  mince  pie  from  mother's 
cupboard  and  go  out  back  of  the  barn  and  eat  it  alone, 
washing  it  down  with  plenty  of  watermelon.  Things  taste 
differently  now-a-days. 

At  the  close  of  the  meal  there  was  a  novel  entertainment 
introduced,  gratis.  I  had  finished  the  fourth  piece  of  pie, 
and  was  just  engaged  with  the  fifth,  when  I  heard  a  hoarse 
rasping  noise,  as  if  a  heavy  bag  was  being  drawn  across  the 
floor,  and  looking  up  discovered  the  cause.  In  the  middle 
of  the  doorway  stood  a  cat,  —  a  maternal  cat,  —  who  had 
spied  my  black  pointer,  "Jet,"-  who  stood  at  my  elbow 
watching  me  eat  and  expectantly  awaiting  her  turn,  with  no 
murderous  designs  on  cat  or  kittens  at  all.  But  the  feline 
temperament  is  suspicious  and  wrathful ;  and  this  cat  was  a 
termagent  anyhow,  born  under  some  evil  star,  and  bent  on 
haviug  a  row.  Now,  to  my  mind  there  is  always  a  terrible 
fascination  in  the  process  of  preparation  which  a  cat  goes 
through  preliminary  to  a  combat.  There  is  such  a  delibei- 
ate  spitefulness  about  it  j  such  a  murderous  malignity  of 
design  as  it  passes  from  one  phase  of  expression  to  another, 
that  it  is  impossible  to  withdraw  your  eyes  from  the  crea- 
ture as  she  passes  through  her  spasms.  Now,  this  cat  was 
no  exception  to  7ier  tribe.  Her  mannerism  was  perfect  after 
its  kind.    Wbvn  I  first  looked  up  she  stood  in  the  doorway 


440  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

with  a  suggestive  curve  in  her  back  and  a  slightly  swollen 
appearance  about  her  tail.  She  stood  and  swelled.  The 
curve  in  her  back  grew  and  grew.  Her  tail  bulged  until  it 
was  enormous.  Her  eyes  blazed  hotter  and  hotter.  Her 
mouth  opened  wider  and  wider,  and  out  of  it  came  a  sac- 
cession  of  noises  that  were  simply  frightful.  How  that  cat 
could  keep  anything  inside  of  her  and  spit  in  that  way  was 
a  Fiarvel. 

Of  course  Jet  had  not  been  an  unmindful  spectator  of  the 
scene.  She  had  been  interviewed  before  in  this  style,  and 
knew  what  was  coming.  Her  hair  ridged  up  on  her  back ; 
her  tail  stiffened  straight  as  an  iron  ramrod  ;  and  her  lips 
tightened  over  her  white  teeth.  Any  cat  that  was  at  all 
sensible  would  have  left  such  a  dog  alone.  But  this  feline 
had  no  caution  at  all.  And  when  she  left  the  doorway,  and 
began  to  sidle  across  the  floor  toward  Jet,  I  knew  if  things 
kept  on  much  longer,  the  "  peace  of  Europe  would  be  dis- 
turbed." I  was  just  lifting  myself  from  my  chair,  or  get- 
ting my  legs  out  from  under  the  table  so  I  could  lift  myself 
from  the  chair,  when  that  cat  went  into  the  air  like  a  flash, 
and  exploded  in  a  series  of  the  most  unearthly  noises  over 
Jet's  back.  Of  course,  no  decent  dog  would  stand  any  such 
conduct  as  that,  and  Jet  didn't.  Now  you  understand  this 
was  a  suddenly  improvised  affair ;  I  had  no  programme  to 
go  by,  and  didn't  understand  at  all  where  the  different  parts 
came  in ;  and  besides  the  actors  did  not  seem  to  require  any 
special  prompting,  and  evidently  needed  all  the  room  to 
themselves.  So,  feeling  that  I  wasn't  needed,  and  might 
actually  be  in  the  way  if  I  remained,  I  retired  out  through 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.        441 

the  window  to  the  piazza,  where  I  could  contemplate  the 
development  of  the  action  from  a  back  seat,  as  it  were.  Of 
one  thing  I  am  certain :  I  have  never,  in  city  or  country, 
seen  a  more  intense  performance.  It  was  the  very  climax 
of  high  tragedy.  The  actors  were  up  to  their  best  key,  and 
going  it  strong.  I  saw  that  the  thing  was  drawing  to  a  fine 
point.  Either  I  shouldn't  have  any  dog  in  a  few  minutes, 
or  the  man  wouldn't  have  any  cat  to  speak  of.  One  of  the 
two  things  was  certain.  At  that  instant  the  door  burst 
open,  and  the  man  himself,  with  a  broom  in  his  hand,  burst 
into  the  room,  and  began  to  lay  about  him  right  and  left. 
But  this  only  stirred  Jet  up  tremendously.  The  cat  and  the 
broom  together  brought  out  her  best  points.  The  way  she 
went  after  that  cat,  under  the  table,  between  the  man's  legs, 
back  of  the  stove,  was  indescribable.  But  the  actors  were 
not  all  on  the  stage  yet.  For  again  the  door  burst  open, 
and  a  woman,  without  hoops  on,  and  with  a  washboard  in 
her  hand,  shot  into  the  apartment  with  a  look  of  interroga- 
tion on  her  countenance  frightful  to  see.  She  didn't  stand 
still  more  than  a  second,  for  Jet  came  against  her  in  a  way 
that  sent  her  spinning.  This  was  too  much.  I  dropped 
on  the  piazza,  rolled  off  upon  the  ground,  dug  my  fingers 
into  the  turf,  and  laughed  ! 

In  less  than  four  seconds,  I  saw  a  cat  come  out  through 
the  front  door,  about  half  way  up  from  the  door-sill  to  the 
ceiling,  followed  by  a  dog  in  full  bolt,  with  a  big  broom  and 
a  washboard  close  behind.  The  cat  lit  on  her  feet,  of 
course,  and  went  up  a  tree  in  the  door-yard  faster  than  any 
cat  has  ever  done  that  thing  since  the  beginning  of  the 


442  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

world.  I  clucked  to  Jet,  and  sloped  around  the  corner  of 
the  house,  and  streaked  it  through  the  garden  down  back 
of  the  bam,  where  I  laid  myself  down  on  the  grass  again, 
and  rolled  over  and  over,  wiping  the  tears  from  my  eyes. 

This  is  all,  this  time.  My  pencil  is  worn  down  to  the  last 
inch,  and  I  must  stop.  If  I  ever  get  to  "  Martin's,"  I  will 
tell  you  what  I  see.  But  I  think  I  shall  spend  this  vacation 
traveling  round  with  Jet,  and  stopping  at  country  hotels, 
where  there  are  plenty  of  cats.  I  have  an  idea  that  such  a 
course  would  yield  me  a  great  deal  of  innocent  fun  such  as 
even  a  deacon  couldn't  object  to. 


IT  WAS  THE  VERY  CLIMAX  OF  HIGH   TRAGEDY."    Page  442, 


II. 

CROSSING  A  CARRY  IN  THE  DARK. 

"Sport,  that  wrinkled  care  derides, 
And  laughter,  holding  both  his  sides."  —  Milton. 

a  VlTELL,"  said  I  to  my  companion,  "shall  we  go  up  or 
*  go  down ! " 
We  were  at  the  mouth  of  Bog  Eiver,  where  it  pours  nois- 
ily into  the  outlet  of  Little  Tupper,  —  wet,  hungry,  and 
tired.  The  sun  had  disappeared  behind  the  pines  that 
crested  the  mountains  to  the  west,  and  a  bluish  dusk  was 
darkening  in  the  air.  The  rapids  back  of  us  were  fretting 
hoarsely  in  the  growing  gloom  of  balsam-bearing  banks, 
while  below  the  water  lay  level  and  motionless,  save  where 
some  tiny  fish  broke  the  smooth  surface,  or  a  king-fisher 
stilled  his  harsh  chattering  by  a  noisy  plunge  after  his  prey. 
If  we  went  "  down,"  two  miles  of  easy  boating  would  bring 
us  to  Big  Tupper,  and  to  the  delightful  camp-ground  on 
Breezy  Point,  where  we  had  slept  the  night  before,  and 
where  we  knew  the  droning  pines  would  give  our  weary 
bodies  drowsy  welcome.  If  we  went  "up,"  there  were 
eight  miles  of  river  and  lake  boating,  and  two  miles  of  "  car- 
rying," before  we  could  reach  "  Bobbins,"  on  Little  Tupper. 
The  one  camp-ground  was  within  thirty  minutes  of  us,  the 
other  four  hours  of  good  sharp  work  away,  and  it  was  sun- 
set, and  we  were  dripping ;  but,  in  spite  of  this,  the  vote 


444  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

was  unanimous  to  go  "  up."  The  work  would  keep  us  warm, 
and  tbe  moon  was  at  the  full,  and  Little  Tupper  for  quiet, 
peaceful  beauty  and  happy  memories,  to  us  is  next  door  to 
heaven.    And  so  we  started  "  up." 

We  reached  the  first  "  carry "  before  the  daylight  had 
wholly  faded  out ;  crossed  it  with  hurrying  steps,  and 
launched  again  upon  the  easy  flowing  stream.  By  this  time 
the  red  in  the  west  had  faded  into  gray.  Tbe  sky  above  was 
a  dusky  blue,  lit  into  splendor  here  and  there  by  a  small, 
diamond-like  star,  that  shone  with  quick,  pointed  brilliancy. 
A  wavy  fleece  lay  on  the  still  stretches  of  the  river,  and  the 
drip  of  the  balsam  thickets  as  their  gummy  stems  yielded 
forth  their  liquid  odors,  could  be  heard  on  either  bank.  To 
say  that  it  was  still,  is  no  description.  Even  the  silence 
seemed  to  listen.  Night,  robed  only  in  thinnest  darkness, 
stood  on  the  mountains,  —  shy,  timid,  breathless,  as  if  she 
feared  the  Day  would  suddenly  rush  back  and  devour  her 
with  his  fierce  rays.  The  air  was  sweet  with  her  breathings. 
Cedar  and  pine,  balsam  and  meadow-grass,  lily  and  wild 
rose,  mingled  their  fragrance  in  the  damp  air. 

Up  through  that  paradise  of  odor  we  slowly  passed.  Up 
through  the  fragrant  darkness,  with  careful  paddles  at  bow 
and  stern,  we  felt  our  way,  until,  half  by  sight  and  half  by 
instinct,  we  recognized  the  second  carry,  and  ran  our  boat 
with  easy  motion  shoreward.  The  carry  is  a  mile  and  a 
half  wide,  and  heavily  timbered,  but  well  cut  out,  and  al- 
though very  uneven,  not  difficult  to  traverse  in  the  day. 

Now,  crossing  a  carry  by  daylight  is  one  thing,  and  cross- 
ing it  in  the  night-time  altogether  another.    We  had  some 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.         445 

fun  in  crossing  this  carry  that  night  of  which  the  world  will 
never  know,  —  fan  all  to  ourselves,  and  of  such  a  kind  as 
makes  a  man  sit  down  and  laugh  three  or  four  minutes  in 
one  spot.  We  walked  up  against  two  or  three  trees  that 
night,  and  put  our  arms  around  them  in  the  most  affection- 
ate manner.  We  found  that  our  nose  was  in  front  of  our 
face  twice,  —  an  unnecessary  distance  in  front  of  our  face, 
as  it  seemed  to  us.  We  stepped  into  several  holes  that 
made  us  cross  our  legs  with  a  snap,  and  lurch  backward 
and  forward,  as  if  we  had  been  cut  half  in  two  above  the 
hips,  and  had  lost  all  our  "  connections."  Once  we  stopped 
suddenly  on  a  slippery  stick,  in  a  mudhole,  and  began  to 
bow  to  an  imaginary  person  in  the  most  silly  fashion.  The 
salutations  we  gave  that  invisible  presence  were  as  profound 
as  the  salaams  of  a  desert  Arab.  We  bowed  with  emphasis. 
We  bowed  with  determination.  We  bowed  with  a  snap  in 
the  recovery  that  nearly  broke  our  neck.  Oh,  we  had  fun 
on  the  carry  that  night !  —  fun  that  converted  our  eyes  into 
springs  of  happy  water,  and  made  our  very  ribs  ache  in 
laughter.  The  fact  is,  the  funniest  laughter  is  the  laughter 
that  one  has  alone.  It  is  very  well  to  laugh  in  company, 
for  custom  and  benevolence  alike  demand  it ;  but,  for  the 
most  part,  company  laughter  is  forced.  It  is  a  made-up, 
artificial  thing,  or  else  too  slight  and  decorous  to  be  hearty 
and  adequate.  But  when  the  spirit  of  fun  gets  into  one 
when  all  alone  by  himself  to  such  an  extent  as  to  fairly  pos- 
sess him,  and  he  sits  down  and  puts  his  hands  against  his 
sides,  and  opens  his  mouth,  and  begins  to  sway  backward 
and  forward,  until  his  eyes  rain  with  mirth,  and  he  fairly 


446  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

wrestles  inwardly  with  his  hilarity,  then  his  laughter  is  the 
genuine  thing.  Well,  we  laughed  after  this  Adamite  fashion 
several  times  on  that  carry  j  laughed  so  that  the  solemn  old 
pines  fairly  danced  before  us ;  and  Silence,  tickled  out  of 
her  gravity,  shouted,  "  Ha-ha ! "  and  roared,  "  Ho-ho-o-o-oh !" 
The  fairies,  that  the  legend  says  sleep  in  the  pines,  and  from 
amid  their  sombre  branches  moan  in  sympathy  for  human 
woe,  must  have  puckered  their  tiny  faces  for  once,  and 
screwed  their  little  lips  into  decorum  only  by  the  greatest 
effort,  as  they  saw  the  great  big  human  underneath  laugh- 
ing the  great,  roaring,  rollicking  laughter  of  the  "  natural 
man." 

At  last  we  reached  the  farther  end  of  the  carry,  and  pass- 
ing from  under  the  dark  archway  of  the  gloomy  trees, 
emerged  into  the  glorious  light  of  the  newly  risen  moon. 
Upon  the  white  beach  of  Eound  Lake  we  stood  a  moment 
to  contemplate  the  scene.  The  winds  were  asleep.  Not  a 
stray  puff  skirted  the  shore,  or  put  the  imprint  of  its  tran 
sient  pressure  on  the  water ;  the  lake  lay  level  and  smooth, 
while  the  moon  poured  its  beams  in  even  radiance  upon  its 
surface,  which  glinted  them  back  as  if  it  were  a  great  glass 
mirror.  Along  the  shores,  and  in  the  recesses  of  the  bays, 
Night  lay  in  ambush,  watching  with  lowering  brow  and 
gloomy  eyes  the  triumph  of  the  skies.  The  very  firmament 
seemed  to  be  endued  with  sense,  and  to  be  tranquilly  happy 
as  it  beheld  the  peacefulness  of  the  earth.  From  out  its 
lofty  and  unvexed  composure  it  looked  with  sweet  compla- 
cence down  at  the  heaven  of  peace  which  lay  defined  by  its 
own  light  tranquilly  beneath  it.    Whatever  severance  may 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.        447 

have  come  between  God  and  man,  I  said  to  myself,  the  har- 
mony of  the  old  connection  between  Heaven  and  Nature,  at 
least,  has  never  been  lost. 

We  pushed  our  boat  out  into  the  yielding  water  and  easily, 
as  those  who  would  not  hurry  from  what  is  rarely  found, 
passed,  with  a  motion  that  opened  a  wedge-like  wake 
through  the  smooth  water  into  the  white  light,  heading 
straight  toward  the  field  of  snow-white  lilies,  which,  by 
their  fragrance,  bar  the  entrance  of  evil  spirits  into  Little 
Tupper.  In  the  city,  we  buy  a  single  lily  and  rejoice,  or  if 
in  strolling  on  a  lake  shore  we  find  a  dozen  grouped,  we  cry 
out  with  delight.  But  here,  before  me,  as  I  floated  through 
the  moonlight,  were  acres  of  lilies,  in  full  bloom :  yea,  miles 
of  them,  making  the  white  moonlight  still  whiter,  and  yield- 
ing forth  their  perfume  to  the  air,  as  love  yields  to  love, 
lavishly.  In  a  few  moments  we  came  to  them  and  our  boat 
cleft  its  way  through  the  clustering  globes,  that  grew  only 
the  sweeter  at  the  disturbance.  We  did  not  hurry  —  who 
would,  in  such  a  place  and  at  such  an  hour  ?  Many  a  time, 
in  passed  years,  had  we  floated  across  that  perfumed  field, 
and  as  between  the  fragrance  of  the  lilies  to  the  senses,  and 
the  memories  of  the  years  to  the  soul,  it  was  hard  to  say 
which  were  the  sweeter.  For  there  is  nothing  finer  in  na- 
ture than  men  can  make  to  their  souls,  if  they  but  love 
right  things  and  do  right  deeds.  Love  is  more  fragrant  and 
innocence  whiter  than  even  the  lily  may  be. 

As  we  swung  around  the  sharp  curve  that  marks  the 
entrance  into  Little  Tupper,  a  breeze,  that  had  been  startled 
out  of  its  slumber  by  some  vagrant  echo,  wandering  care- 


448  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

lessly  in  the  air,  came  bustling  down  the  lake,  and  striking 
coldly  against  our  wet  garments,  chilled  us  to  the  bone.  It 
is  astonishing  how  loose  a  man's  teeth  will  get  on  these 
northern  lakes,  when  a  current  of  cold  air  strikes  against 
him  when  his  clothes  are  as  wet  as  his  paddle  staff,  and  the 
vital  force  has  been  drained  out  of  him  by  fourteen  hours 
of  backing  and  boating.  I  had  not  been  two  minutes  in 
that  cold  current  before  I  had  more  teeth  in  my  mouth,  and 
more  mouth  around  the  teeth,  too,  than  I  knew  what  to  do 
with.  My  upper  jaw  lost  its  permanency  and  my  lower  jaw 
its  steadfastness  of  adjustment,  and  they  hammered  against 
each  other  in  the  most  alarming  fashion,  while  the  poor 
teeth  rattled  and  shook  like  dried  peas  in  a  pod. 

There  was  "  Music  in  the  air,"  and  of  such  a  sort  as  angels 
never  heard,  as  we  hurried  along  into  that  rising  current  of 
cold  air ;  and  when  we  crawled  out  of  the  boat  at  "  Bob- 
bins," and  shook  the  kinks  out  of  our  chilled  legs,  their  stif- 
fened joints  fairly  snapped,  and  the  cords  ridged  out  as  if 
the  imps  of  rheumatism  had  put  their  fiendish  leverage  upon 
them.  We  had  no  "change"  with  us  —  we  didn't  take  a 
very  large  wardrobe  along  on  this  trip  —  and  when  we  had 
aroused  our  host  our  first  and  most  emphatic  request  was 
for  "  old  clothes."  Now  the  resources  of  the  house  in  this 
direction  were  abundant  in  quantity,  but  terribly  deficient 
in  proportion.  The  garments  which  fell  to  my  share  were 
good  enough  for  their  proprietor,  probably,  but  they  were 
evidently  cut  for  a  man  several  years  younger  than  I  am. 
The  pantaloons  were  two  or  three  stories  too  short,  and  the 
shirt  would  have  made  the  Egyptians  bow  down  and  wor- 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.         449 

ship.  But  perseverance  conquers  all  obstacles ;  and  having 
got  myself  into  the  top  of  those  trousers,  with  the  help  of 
my  companion,  I  shook  myself  down  to  the  bottom  of  them, 
and  some  ways  below  the  bottom  of  them,  too.  Indeed, 
when  I  fairly  got  through  those  breeches  I  found  they  were 
of  a  Continental  cut,  and  precisely  of  the  fashion  our  fathers 
wore  a  century  ago.  But  the  shirt  was  a  mystery.  Off  from 
me  it  looked  as  a  shirt  should  look,  but  when  I  had  got  it 
on  it  looked  as  no  shirt  has  ever  looked  for  six  thousand 
years.  My  arms  went  into  and  went  through  the  sleeves  as 
a  tin  peddler  goes  through  a  toll-gate,  when  he  is  too  much 
hurried  by  pressure  of  business  to  stop  and  pay  the  assess- 
ment. I  never  knew  what  long  arms  I  had  until  I  got  into 
that  shirt.  There  was  room  for  a  dozen  bracelets  below  the 
cuff-buttons,  and  when  I  got  to  bed  I  felt  as  if  I  wanted 
one  bed  for  my  body  and  another  for  my  arms.  But  the 
warmth  of  those  dry,  coarse  garments!  How. the  chilled 
skin  glowed  under  them,  and  how  the  shrunken  veins 
swelled  again  and  the  cold  current  flowed  with  a  genial 
glow.  Ah,  me !  no  wonder  the  old  poets  sang  that  "  Death 
is  cold  but  life  is  warm; "  or,  that  the  fire  worshippers,  amid 
the  Persian  roses,  dreamed  that  life  came  out  of  the  sun, 
and  that  the  spirit  of  man  was  but  a  spark  from  a  mighty 
flame,  for  true  it  is  that  the  dead  are  cold  and  the  warm 
alone  are  alive.  It  was  after  midnight,  when,  warm  and 
happy,  we  stretched  six  feet  of  comfortable  weariness  on 
an  easy  bed,  and  with  visions  of  Bog  River  rapids,  dark  car- 
ries, a  moon-lit  lake,  and  a  field  of  white  lilies  floating 
dreamingly  in  our  mind,  we  passed  from  the  world  of  sense 


450  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

and  feeling  into  that  dim  land  of  which  we  know  nothing 
save  that  we  enter  it  weary,  stay  awhile,  and  come  forth  re- 
freshed. 


m. 

CLIMBING  WHITE  FACE. 

"That's  a  perilous  shot."  —  Shakespeare. 

'Night's  candles  are  burnt  out,  and  jocund  day 
Stands  tiptoe  on  the  misty  mountain  tops." 

Shakespeare. 


'  \  \7"H0  ever  ascended  a  mountain,  worthy  of  the  name, 
and  did  not  meet  with  some  laughable  experiences  ? 
Above  all,  who  ever  attempted  to  cheat  nature  out  of  her 
just  dues  by  riding  up  a  mountain  on  horseback  and  was 
not  made  to  feel  her  revenge  ?  Now  this  was  precisely  what, 
as  a  party,  we  purposed  to  do.  It  was  five  miles  from  the 
hotel  to  the  summit  of  White  Face,  up  two  of  which  the 
the  path  or  trail,  —  for  it  was  then  a  mere  trail  —  was  so 
steep  as  to  compel  the  pedestrian  to  crawl  at  times  literally 
on  his  hands  and  knees.  The  man  who  cut  the  trail  out 
had  evidently  never  heard  of  the  beauty  of  a  curved  line, 
for  he  turned  neither  to  the  right  hand  nor  to  the  left,  but 
having  set  his  nose  in  a  mathematically  straight  line  with 
the  top,  conscientiously  followed  it.  Across  gulches  and 
over  bowlders  j  down  the  sides  of  chasms  arid  up  precipi- 
tous ledges,  steep  as  a  French  roof — wherever  that  inflexi- 
ble nose  pointed,  he  "  went  for  it."  I  have  often  thought 
what  an  invaluable  piece  of  property  that  nose  would  be- 


452  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

come  should  the  owner  chance  to  be  lost  on  a  western  prai- 
rie. No  danger  of  his  walking  in  circles  with  that  wonder- 
ful projection  in  front  of  him.  Now,  tramping  is  something 
I  never  admired.  I  can  get  along  very  well  tramping  down 
hill,  but  when  the  path  begins  to  run  upward,  I  always  get 
in  and  ride.  This  peculiarity  runs  all  through  our  family. 
When  I  married  I  fortunately  found  a  wife  of  the  same  dis- 
position, only  a  little  more  so.  The  other  lady  of  the  party 
shared  our  feelings.  So  when  we  were  asked  whether  we 
preferred  to  ride  or  walk,  the  decision  was  charmingly  unan- 
imous,—  as  all  family  decisions  should  be.  We  all  voted 
one  way  —  to  ride. 

So  we  mounted  :  one  lady  on  a  side-saddle,  the  other  a  la 
common  sense,  which  is  the  way  I  always  ride.  I  cannot 
describe  the  horses.  Mine  was  not  large  enough  to  des- 
cribe. It  might  have  been  different  with  a  shorter  man, 
but  it  took  me  some  time  after  I  was  mounted  to  discover 
that  I  was  mounted.  I  finally  concluded,  on  the  whole,  that 
I  was,  at  least  as  much  as  I  should  ever  be  on  that  horse. 
It  was  the  only  time  in  my  life  that  I  could  ride  or  walk  at 
the  same  time.  I  asked  the  landlord,  as  I  started  off,  which 
pair  of  legs  I  was  expected  to  attend  to.  He  pointed  out  a 
very  likely  pair,  and  I  used  them.  I  got  on  so  well  with 
them  that  I  brought  them  home  with  me,  and  have  kept 
them  ever  since. 

For  the  firet  half  mile  I  ran.  Then  I  rested,  and  the 
horse  ran.  Then  I  let  down  and  took  another  turn  at  it. 
Then  the  horse  tried  it  again,  and  so  we  kept  it  up  between 
us,  until  we  came  to  a  ravine  from  which  the  mountain 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.         453 

sloped  upward  like  a  roof.  By  this  time  I  was  in  good 
practice,  and  ready  for  almost  anything.  "Up,  up  we  went ; 
the  ladies  ahead  and  nearly  out  of  sight.  It  was  impossible 
for  the  horse  and  me  to  spell  each  other  here  and  so  we 
both  walked  —  holding  each  other  up  by  turns.  At  last  we 
came  to  a  long,  sloping  ledge,  that  rose  at  a  fearful  inclina- 
tion. Directly  over  this  the  trail  led.  A  wall  of  rock,  like 
the  sides  of  a  water-spout,  on  either  hand,  made  turning 
aside  impossible.  I  summoned  up  all  my  energies,  got  the 
six  feet  under  me  in  as  good  position  as  I  could,  and  with  a 
yell  calculated  to  start  the  carcass  of  death  itself,  dashed  at 
it.  TJp,  up  we  scrambled.  We  were  twenty  feet  from  the 
bottom  when  the  pony,  either  from  exhaustion  or  pure  wil- 
fulness, stopped.  Of  course  I  stopped  too.  It  was  an  awk- 
ward position.  I  realized  it.  Safety  lay  in  the  pony's  pluck 
and  power.  Never  did  my  affection  go  out  so  strongly  to- 
ward any  animal.  Never  before  did  I  know  how  much  I 
could  love  a  horse.  I  embraced  him  —  putting  my  arms 
entirely  around  his  neck.  I  exhorted  him  energetically 
with  my  voice,  -and  a  little  otherwise.  But  no  argument,  no 
entreaty,  could  prevail  on  that  animal  to  go  ahead.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  began  to  go  behind.  First  one  foot  gave 
way,  then  another.  When  he  slipped,  I  slipped.  At  last 
the  movement  backward  began  to  get  lively.  If  he  kept 
improving  his  gait  he  would  land  me,  as  nearly  as  I  could 
calculate,  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  in  about  ten  minutes. 
The  motion  had  already  become  so  considerable  that  the 
tails  of  my  coat  began  to  stream  the  wrong  way  j  when,  by 
a  slight  deviation  Irom  the  true  line  of  descent,  we  came  in 


454  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

contact  with  a  tree.  It  was  a  large  hemlock  of  twelve 
inches  in  diameter,  with  a  ledge  of  about  ten  tons  weight 
back  of  it.  We  struck  it  fair.  It  held.  I  involuntarily  put 
my  hand  to  my  neck  to  ascertain  if  my  head  had  been 
snapped  off.  My  head  was  still  there.  The  discovery  re- 
lieved me.  I  do  not,  it  is  true,  know  how  a  man  would  feel 
with  his  head  off,  but  I  do  know  how  he  feels  when  he  un- 
expectedly discovers  that  it  is  still  on. 

As  I  sat  meditating  on  what  I  should  do  next,  I  heard  the 
sound  as  of  some  heavy  body  coming  rapidly  down  the 
mountain.  The  next  instant  it  came  in  sight.  It  was  a 
horse !  Its  manner  of  descent  was  identical  with  mine,  only 
considerably  more  rapid.  Being  higher  up  when  it  started 
it  had  had  a  chance  to  improve  on  its  gait,  and  was  now 
making,  as  I  judged,  pretty  nearly  its  best  time.  I  can 
never  describe  my  feelings  as  I  sat  and  saw  that  horse  com- 
ing toward  me.  It  is  possible  for  a  brave  man  to  stand  and 
face  rifle  bullets  and  cannon  balls.  There  is  glory  in  it  if 
you  should  get  killed,  and  that  thought  helps  some ;  but  to 
have  a  whole  horse  shot  at  you  at  short  range  is  absolutely 
appalling.  But  fortune  favored  me.  The  animal  kept  the 
straight  line  of  descent,  and  went  past  without  hitting  me. 

Thankful  for  my  deliverance,  and  inwardly  vowing  that  I 
would  never  attempt  to  ride  up  a  mountain  again,  I  walked 
off  my  horse  and  toiled  my  way  upward  until  I  reached  the 
Lodge  just  under  the  crest,  where,  in  the  gathering  dark- 
ness, I  found  the  ladies  safe  and  sound,  and  where  we 
passed  the  night. 

Now,  if  there  is  a  person  who  has  any  intention  of  writ- 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.        455 

ing  rue  a  letter,  begging  me  to  tell  him  if  this  is  a  literal, 
truthful,  and  orthodox  account  of  our  ascent  up  White  Face, 
I  assure  him  now  beforehand  that  I  shall  never  answer  that 
note,  but  advise  him  to  go  and  "  ask  John  ! " 

Morning  dawned.  Our  feet  were  on  the  summit  while  yet 
the  eastern  sky  was  gray  and  cold.  Anon  a  warmer  hue 
spread  over  it.  Three  gleams  of  purple  shot  upward, 
wavered  and  waved  an  instant,  then  stood  in  fixed  forma- 
tion. Around  their  bases  a  line  of  carnation  appeared,  and 
widened,  until  it  became  an  arc  of  rose.  The  stars  above 
us  paled.  As  if  stricken  with  envy,  they  sickeued  and 
died.  Venus  alone  resisted,  and  gave  up  her  hold  on  life  as 
a  dolphin,  whose  colors  deepen  in  death.  The  fog  beneath 
lay  heavy  on  the  valleys,  covering  with  its  white  folds  the 
lesser  mountains.  At  length  the  uppermost  point  of  the 
red  orb  appeared.  A  shaft  of  yellow  light  ploughed  through 
the  upper  stratum  of  the  fog  as  a  cannon-ball  ploughs 
through  a  swarded  field,  and  rent  it  in  twain.  It  was  only 
the  first  shaft  from  a  bow  that  in  an  instant  shot  forth  a 
score  of  flaming  arrows.  The  fog  was  thick  and  stubborn ; 
but  what  might  resist  the  orb  appointed  of  God  to  lighten 
the  world !  The  fleece  relaxed  its  hold  upon  the  hills.  It 
surrendered  its  empire  over  the  valleys.  It  fled  from  the 
still  waters  of  a  thousand  lakes.  It  untwined  its  fingers 
from  the  misty  pine  tops ;  and,  ushered  in  with  glory,  God's 
sweetest  gift  to  man  —  the  holy  day  of  rest  came  to  the 
world. 

To  us  it  was  indeed  a  sabbath  in  the  heavens.  The  sky 
was  cloudless.    Not  a  scud  or  patch  of  fleece  in  the  entire 


456  ADIRONDACK   TALES. 

firmament, — a  perfect  vault  of  deepest  blue,  filled  with  a 
pure,  white  light.  The  air  was  cool,  moviDg  in  steady  cur- 
rent past  us.  Not  a  sound  was  heard,  save  when  an  eagle, 
swooping  upward  on  his  dark  pinions,  startled  at  the  sight 
of  human  faces  a  thousand  feet  above  his  eyrie,  challenged 
us  with  his  wild  cry,  then  sailed  away.  And  there  for  hours 
we  three  sat  on  the  gray  rocks,  in  the  deep  silence  and  the 
white  light,  worshiping.  Near  midday  a  change  occurred. 
Beneath  us  clouds  began  to  form.  Over  Big  Tupper's  Lake, 
fifty  miles  to  the  west,  a  dark  bank  gathered.  We  watched 
it  rise.  We  saw  a  flash  cleave  it  from  top  to  bottom  ;  and, 
after  a  long  interval,  a  heavy  boom  shook  the  thin  air  around 
us  into  vibrations,  aDd  the  huge  bulk  beneath  us  trembled 
to  the  deep  jar.  It  was  the  signal-gun,  ordering  an  ad- 
vance. Straight  on  the  cloud  came.  It  marched  across  the 
wilderness  as  a  battery  sweeps  to  the  front,  in  some  pinch 
of  battle,  halting  ever  and  anon  to  deliver  a  volley.  We 
saw  the  shadow  on  the  forest.  We  saw  the  flash  and  blaze. 
We  heard  each  successive  boom,  and  felt  beneath  us  the 
answering  jar.  Near  and  more  near  it  came.  It  swept 
against  the  mountain  on  whose  crest  we  stood,  as  an  army 
charges  a  citadel,  struck  it,  and  recoiled.  But  the  wild 
forces  of  the  wind  urged  it  from  behind,  seeming  to  cheer 
it  on.  It  pressed  to  the  attack,  swept  over  the  outlyiug 
spurs,  and  wrapped  the  mountains  about  on  all  sides.  It 
had  triumphed.  Then  did  our  eyes  behold  a  spectacle  rarely 
witnessed,  even  by  mountaineers.  Five  hundred  feet  below 
us  hung  the  cloud.  We  cOuld  look  into  its  black  center, 
and  see  the  lightnings  play.    We  could  hear  the  crash  of 


LETTERS  FROM   THE   "WILDERNESS.  457 

thunder  in  the  gorges  far  beneath,  the  dull  roar  of  the 
gathering  torrents,  the  crush  of  falling  trees  as  they  went 
down  with  thump  and  boom,  while  above  us  the  sun  was 
shining  brightly,  and  the  heavens  were  cloudless.  At  last 
the  cloud  broke ;  half  swayed  to  the  north,  and  half  to  the 
south :  but  a  black  fragment  torn  off  from  the  main  body, 
and  lifted  by  some  rising  column  of  air,  rose  slowly  up,  fol- 
lowing the  gorge  on  whose  brink  we  stood,  until  it  folded 
us  in  its  dark  vapor.  Still  rising,  until  it  stood  some  hun- 
dred feet  above  our  heads,  the  rarefied  current  died  out  be- 
neath it,  and  pausing  a  moment  in  the  still  air,  it  poured  out 
its  myriad  drops.  The  sun  smote  against  the  crystal  globes, 
until  they  gleamed  and  glowed,  and  a  gorgeous  arc  grew  in 
the  air  so  nigh  that  we  could  put  our  hands  into  the  crimson 
tints.  "  See,  see  ! "  said  one,  "  we  hold  the  rainbow  in  our 
hands,  and  we  will  call  this  Eainbow  Gorge."  And  the  old 
guide  said,  "  Let  it  be  so  called  forever." 

The  hours  rolled  on ;  and  a  Sabbath  such  as  we  had  never 
before  passed,  drew  to  its  close.  The  sun  stooped  to  its 
setting ;  and,  standing  on  the  topmost  pinnacle,  we  watched 
to  see  the  day  die  out.  Never  before  had  our  eyes  seen, 
and  never  again,  doubtless,  will  they  behold  such  a  sight. 
The  old  guide,  whose  axe  had  first  blazed  a  path  up  its  steep 
side  ;  who,  thirty  years  before,  had  built  him  a  stone  lodge 
upon  its  crest,  ,that  he  might  pass  his  nights  upon  this 
mountain,  so  dearly  did  he  love  the  charm  of  its  solitude ; 
whose  face  was  as  rough  and  seamed  as  the  gray  granite 
on  which  he  stood,  said,  as  he  crouched  at  our  feet,  wrapped 
in  his  blanket,  that  never  but  thrice  before  had  he  seen 


458  ADIRONDACK  TALES. 

such  a  sunset.  The  air  was  cool  and  crisp,  bearing  against 
us  with  a  steady  current  from  the  west.  It  did  not  vary. 
There  was  no  eddy,  nor  ripple,  nor  undulation  in  it.  It 
seemed  as  if  the  whole  atmosphere  had  become  loosened, 
and  was  moving  bodily  eastward.  With  what  words  shall  I 
be  able  to  make  you  see  what  we  saw  ?  The  air  was  pure 
and  clear  as  a  newly-cut  diamond,  white  and  colorless  as 
mountain  air  always  is,  —  a  perfect  lens  through  which  with 
unimpeded  eye  we  saw  the  marvelous  transfiguration  from 
day  to  night  go  on.  Five  thousand  feet  beneath  us,  Lake 
Placid  slept,  verifying  its  name.  In  the  south,  a  hundred 
mountain  peaks  were  ablaze  with  the  peculiar  red  sunset 
light.  For  a  hundred  miles  the  wilderness  stretched  away, 
—  a  deep  green  sea,  across  whose  surface  the  sun  was  cast- 
ing great  fields  of  crimson.  Amid  the  darker  portions 
eighty  patches  of  gold  flashed,  representing  as  many  lakes. 
Eastward  the  valley  of  Champlain  lay  in  deep  shadow.  To 
the  north,  bounding  the  vision  like  a  thread  of  silver, 
gleamed  the  St.  Lawrence.  In  the  valley  to  the  south,  lay 
the  martyred  dust  of  him  who  died  on  a  Virginia  gallows, 
that  American  manhood  and  American  liberty  might  not 
perish.  The  closing  moment  now  had  come.  The  heavens 
to  the  west  were  swathed  in  the  richest  tints  of  scarlet  and 
orange.  A  thousand  colors  lay  on  forest  and  lake.  The 
mountain  summits  flamed.  The  sun,  like  a  globe  of  liquid 
fire,  quivering  in  the  intensity  of  its  heat,  stood  as  if  bal- 
anced on  the  western  pines.  Down  into  them  it  burnt  its 
way.  Pausing  for  a  moment,  and  only  for  a  moment,  it 
poured  its  warm  benediction  upon  the  forest,  sent  a  crimson 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  WILDERNESS.         459 

farewell  to  each  mountain-top,  kissed  the  clouds  around  its 
couch,  shook,  quivered,  dropped  from  sight !  And  there  in 
the  crisp  air  we  three  stood,  and  gazed  iu  silence  westward, 
until  the  shadows  deepened  along  the  sky,  the  fog  crept  in 
and  filled  once  more  the  valleys  at  our  feet ;  and  the  wil- 
derness which  had  been  to  me  and  mine  a  nurse  and  home, 
and  which  we  feared  we  should  never  see  or  enter  together 
again,  lay  wrapped  in  silence  and  in  gloom. 


THE  ADIRONDACK  SERIES, 

OF  WHICH  THIS  VOLUME  IS  THE  FIRST, 

WILL  BE   CONTINUED  IN 

THE  GOLDEN  RULE, 

OF  WHICH 

Rev.  W.  H.  H.  MURRAY  is  Editor-in-Chief. 
Beginning  Sept.  1. 

The  first  story  will  be  "  CRAZY  JOHN,  or  The  Hermit  of  Long 
Lake,"  who  is  briefly  introduced  in  this  volume,  and  the  history  of 
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Murray's  imagination,  will  make  one  of  the  most  vivid  bits  of  story 
writing  ever  published. 

The  Golden  Rule  has  already  won  an  unprecedented  success;  and 
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among  the  largest  of  any  like  ptaper  in  the  country. 

It  is  without  a  rival  in  its  special  field  as  a  family  journal,  maintain- 
ing first-class  departments  in 

Literature,  Keligion,  Agriculture,  and  News. 

In  addition  to  the  Adirondack  Series,  its  Literary  Department  con- 
tains short  Stories,  Sketches,  Reviews,  Poems,  Book  Notices,  and  con- 
tributions and  selections  from  the  choicest  current  literature. 

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in  this  department  have  been  quoted  far  and  wide  in  the  press  of  the 
country. 

A   CHILDREN'S    DEPARTMENT 

Is  added  to  the  second  volume,  and  contains  stories,  instruction,  fun, 
and  entertainment  for  the  young  folks. 

A   REVIEW  OF  THE  WEEK, 
Embracing  an  editorial  summary  of  all  the  news,  except  crimes,  scan- 
dals, and  sensations. 

N.B.  —  Of  course  it  is  understood  that  no  pressure  of  literary  matter, 
will  ever  be  allowed  to  crowd  out  Mr.  Murray's  Sermons  and  Bible- 
Class  Talks,  to  whose  publication  in  our  columns  The  Golden  Rule 
largely  owes  its  quick  and  unprecedented  success. 

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Address 

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